THE SECOND COMMANDMENT
YOU SHALL NOT TAKE THE NAME OF THE LORD YOUR GOD IN VAIN
I asked God the question: How do I live this Commandment? I usually do not use bad language, except for an occasion slip I do not pronounce the name of God except in prayer. Is that the sum total of what God expects of me? I closed my eyes and made believe, in faith God was speaking to me,
He said “I will give you another way of looking at and living this Commandment. Respect is the pivotal word. It is a simple word but with an abundance of meaning. Respect is responding to the hope and dreams of someone. I would like you to think about respect in terms of gifts you receive. We show respect to the one who gives us the gift by respecting the gift. We use it or wear it for the purpose intended.
I have given you many gifts. The one I would like to focus on is creation. The sun, moon minerals good land to grow crops these are all gifts which I have given you to use and to take care of. The difference between these gifts and other gifts is that still belong to me. It takes the gift of faith to accept this fact. This is true especially in the 21st century where everyone seems to treat creation as an owner rather than a steward. We see many items with “made in China” stamped on them. A person of faith should see “this belongs to God.”
So, how do you respect my name? In the context of respect and a vision of nature you respect my name by taking care of my creation, “my” being the big word. Little things, turning off the faucet, careful how we use electricity not being wrapped up in consumerism (learn how to ask: do I really need this). In dealing with people, do you look at them with “this person is God’s possession” stamped on their foreheads? You see everything and everyone has my name on them. Disrespect them and you disrespect me. You truly take my name in vain, that is, you make it trivial.