Humbly submit your will to God (Thy Will be done) and consecrate yourself to the Sacred Heart of Jesus through Mary.

Jesus said to his disciples:
“You have heard that it was said to your ancestors,
Do not take a false oath,
but make good to the Lord all that you vow.
But I say to you, do not swear at all;
not by heaven, for it is God’s throne;
nor by the earth, for it is his footstool;
nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
Do not swear by your head,
for you cannot make a single hair white or black.
Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’
Anything more is from the Evil One. MT 5:33-37

The third characteristic of a follower of Christ is to be honest. An oath is a person saying the truth with God as their witness. It is used in the courtroom today. Jesus teaches us that we must be honest and trustworthy so their is no need for oaths. ”Make good to the Lord all that you vow.”

A man and a woman make vows in the sacrament of matrimony to love each other through the good times and bad, in sickness and health, for richer or poorer, all the days of their life with a priest as the witness. They make these vows to each other but God binds them together never to be broken but they will be challenged.

At baptism, parents, godparents, or the person being baptized say the vows which are to reject Satan and all of his empty promises and to believe in the all of the revealed Truths of Christ found in the Creed with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength.

Often times I find myself lying to the people I love the most. I often lie to myself, too. I think it will make things easier when I know better. I try to rationalize my sin and addictions. I blame others. I also find the toughest battles on a daily basis in my life are keeping my vows in marriage and with God in my baptism. May we ask God for grace to grow in love and forgiveness, so we may continue to be holy and purified through our baptism and vocation where we learn what it means “our lives are meant to give away”. I need the grace to live sacrificial love (agape) and be more unselfish.

In short, Jesus is telling us that if we want to truly know ourselves and continue to grow healthy relationships, we have to stop lying to ourselves. We need to get to know God so we know who we are. We need to look in the mirror and hold ourselves accountable, take ownership. Most importantly, we need to recognize that every time we turn on the TV and Internet we are being lied to. The information and messages coming from these media outlets are forming our beliefs in our unconscious mind more than our religion classes, the Scriptures, our Catholic Catechism, our Creed, spiritual books and going to Mass on Sundays. Jesus gave us an intellect to know Him. Use it. Seek Him out, the Truth. “The Truth will set you free”. JN 8:32

Once we know our identity in our Creator, we can begin to talk to Him about what He made us for, our mission/purpose. At 46, I still buy into the lies of the culture, my flesh, and give into the temptations of the Devil. It is is an ongoing battle for each of us each day. We can face it or run from it. We have a Savior who has given us Himself to help us in this battle. Stay committed to the vows you make and review them often to remind you what you’re living and fighting for. God can’t break His vows (covenant), it is against His nature. We have someone who is daily fighting for us, loving us, forgiving us. God’s love is the most powerful thing in the world, allow it to transform the way you think and live instead of the lies of the world.

Today’s challenge: Next time you are faced with an opportunity to lie, say “Come, Holy Spirit”, or Jesus I invite you into this moment, and be honest. Stop lying to yourself (rationalizing your sin) so you can find your true identity and start beating the Devil like the saints did. Write down the vows of baptism on a bookmark so you read them often. If you don’t know what they are Google Catholic baptismal vows.

Be a servant, become a saint!
​#Christian YOLO