"And don't say anything you don't mean. This counsel is embedded deep in
our traditions. You only make things worse when you lay down a smoke
screen of pious talk, saying, 'I'll pray for you,' and never doing it,
or saying, 'God be with you,' and not meaning it. You don't make your
words true by embellishing them with religious lace. In making your
speech sound more religious, it becomes less true. Just say 'yes' and
'no.' When you manipulate words to get your own way, you go wrong."
(Matt 5:33-37, MSG)
How many among us keep our word? If we would
take some time to delve into this topic, we would find that this is,
indeed, a problem. We don't always keep our word! It's true that some
are worse at this than others, but that doesn't give any of us license
to do so!
One day, it seems ions ago, my boss gave me her word
concerning a work assignment. A few months later she retracted her
promise. When I reminded her of her promise, she answered: "Do you have
proof? I didn't write it on paper, did I? No. What's said can be
forgotten."
Are we any better? A dad promises his daughter to
attend her Christmas concert; however, another emergency comes up, and
he misses the concert. His daughter desperately cries: "But he
promised!"
It's even worse when we add "pious talk" to our
promises. What will others think of our Heavenly Father when we don't
follow through?
I, too, do not always keep my promises. It's true
that I attempt to honor them at all times, but the fact is, at my age, I
forget quite easily. I don't mean to break my promises, I just forget.
To avoid disillusionment, I always try to tell people, "Please remind me
or I will forget!" It sure helps. When we share our weakness with
others, they will always come through!
When my son flew back to
my neck of the woods this summer, I promised him I would be at the
airport when he arrived. For someone who doesn't like to drive, that was
a huge promise. It would have been easy for me to say to my son: "Sorry,
there was too much traffic." Or "I don't feel so well!"
Instead I
consulted with Google Maps and found a way to avoid highway traffic. I
could make the drive to the airport through the country where cars are
sparse. Terrific! I made certain that I would be there on time.
Why would I ever want to leave my son stranded? I hadn't seen him for 6
months! Imagine if I were to forget to pick him up. The next time, would
he be so eager to visit?
Our "yes", should always be a "yes" and
our "no" should always be a "no". After all, we are representatives of
the Most High!
Jesus always keeps His word as well. He never
fails to come through for us on time, as confirmed in Romans 5:6:
"Christ arrives right on time to make this happen. He didn't, and
doesn't, wait for us to get ready. He presented himself for this
sacrificial death when we were far too weak and rebellious to do
anything to get ourselves ready. And even if we hadn't been so weak, we
wouldn't have known what to do anyway." (Rom 5:6, MSG)
By the
way, can you pick me at the airport? I've already been waiting here for
over 2 hours!
Rob Chaffart
Promises Can be Broken! Really? Majestic Mountain View Series, Part 20
Today's Bible Verse:
"And don't say anything you don't mean." (Matt 5:33
Promises Can be Broken! Really? Majestic Mountain View Series, Part 20
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