The Ten Commandments:
Commandment III

If we are not talking directly to God or Jesus Christ or talking to some one about the trinity, we are taking the names of Them in vain. The next time you are with some people, count to yourself how many times they use the names God, Lord or Jesus Christ in their conversation. Were they praying? Was God the subject of the conversation? If not, they were using the names in vain.

God's name is special because it carries his personal identity. The way we use God's name conveys how we really feel about him. We should respect his name and use it appropriately, speaking it in praise or worship rather than in curse or jest. We should not take lightly the abuse of or dishonoring of his name. It's like someone saying, "Doug McHone! How did that happen?" You may be smiling now, but I wouldn't if my name was often used as a slang term rather than to refer to me.

So what does that leave? Should we use Satan's name in vain? Or Hell? Of course not. Those terms should not be taken lightly, not out of respect, but because we don't want to belittle them. The enemy of our God would like nothing more than to be underestimated by followers of God.

Yours in Christ,

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Day 2

I almost wonder if I didn't start the Ten Commandments at the wrong time, because the subject of idolatry is mentioned all over this reading. God goes to great lengths to point out that he is the only legitimate God out there. He then challenges the worshipers of idols to match the things that He does.

It's all laid out pretty clearly in this reading. The blacksmith hammers the metal until it reaches the desired shape or the carpenter does the same with a chisel. Some of this same wood will be burned as fuel for cooking and its being worshiped? The whole thing is a lie! And not a victimless crime, either. People relied on idols to care for them and see that their problems could be solved. They sacrificed their best crops and livestock to these hunks of material. They killed their children to appease blocks of wood!

And idolatry wasn't the only offense. The Babylonians are mentioned as a people who relied on magical conjuring and astrology. Powerless people were guiding the society into ruin and God was the one who would end it.

Day 3

Ragbrai is coming up in a few short days and thousands of people from around the globe will be bicycling from one end of Iowa to another. One tradition of this ride is to dip the back tire of your bicycle in the Missouri river at the beginning and the front tire in the Mississippi river at the end. This tradition is possible because a river is a permanent fixture on the landscape. It is wide, strong, and brings prosperity to the communities near its banks. Just look at what the Nile meant to the Egyptians.

What I'm getting at is the term, "peace like a river." God was telling His people that had they followed Him, their peace would have been strong, everlasting and would bring them prosperity while the wicked would enjoy none of this peace. Their loss helped bring about the plan that God had held from the beginning. The inclusion of all people into His fold.

Being in His fold is a beautiful thing. We are expected to throw our cares on him; It's not a burden to do this! Finding your own way out of a bad situation may be a natural thing for you to try, but when your maker says to lean on him, take the offer and let your path become less treacherous. The Lord will be your rear guard, so you will have no reason to look to your past as He has already handled any loose ends.

Day 4

Prophesy concerning the purpose of Christ's time on Earth is prevalent in this reading. Jesus took our sins and weaknesses upon Himself. For this, he was scorned and killed in the most humiliating way that we could create. His punishment for our sins brought the promise of peace to the world. Do you have peace in your heart? You can do it right now if you haven't. Everyone has gone astray from God and is in need of redemption. Jesus was crucified and his soul went to Hell on your behalf. After his return on the third day, it was done. He has conquered death so you never have to face it.

The other gleaning I'll share from this reading is the fact that good people as well as bad people depart from this world in death, some of them long before their time. Why can God let this happen? Remember, His ways are not our ways. We do not know what his plans are and often despair at this fact of life. The one who dies in Christ has found eternal peace and their work here is done. I also want to mention John 12:24.

I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.

Day 5

I have never fasted. I'm not even good at staying on a diet! One thing I do know, though, is that the purpose of a fast is not weight loss or to make yourself out to be a "good person." So why are we to fast? What is the point?

First seems to be the preparation. If you have been forsaking the commands of God, there seems to be no good to fast for Him, so you need to get right with God. On the day of fasting, you need to spend time in prayer, also. If anything can keep you from veering off His path, prayer is the tool that can do this. Fasting is not a way to build up your esteem in the community. According to this passage, it is to be used to share the food you would have eaten with the hungry and support those who are less fortunate than yourself. This will actually remove the yoke of oppression from you and you will feel free to help others in the future.

Day 6

We have another plea to God in this reading. Israel had been feeling the withholding of God's protection for some time now and they were getting, shall we say, restless. I also caught a hint of an accusation here. Saying that they hadn't been calling on Him because He hadn't been listening? At least the sins that separated them from Him are cited as the ultimate reason.

Day 7

In this time, Hezekiah was the king of Israel and he was a good one. After his death, everything went right back downhill. Our society is no benchmark to work from, but you'd think that eventually they would have put two and two together. They were prosperous under godly rulers that led them down the right path and times were terrible when they strayed off the path and began going their own way.

Manasseh, Hezekiah's son was a pretty bad guy. He went so far as to put an idol into the temple of the Lord! That's about as bad as it gets! He was so bad that he led the people of Israel to the worst level of evil that they had ever reached. I'm a firm believer in goals, and I know records are meant to be broken, but this isn't what is intended in these statements! It got so bad that God decided to destroy Jerusalem and hand her over to oppressors. The king was taken to Babylon and some quick and very sincere repentance brought the favor of God back to him and he was freed.

His son, Amon, had to have heard the story and probably lived a part of it, but he was just as bad when his turn came to reign. His officials decided to assassinate him and the people didn't want them either. They put Josiah on the throne and he really cleaned up the place!

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