Cussing

[Photo taken on the Carnival Cruise ship off the coast of Cuba]

This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. (1 John 1:5)

We sat at the table talking. It was a local eatery. We talked about ministry and the things that deeply matter to us. It is not the kind of conversation that I have with everybody, everyday.  I usually have that kind of dialogue between a select few individuals. Then came the question: “Why are you tripping about cussing?” I thought, “Un huh! She has seen me on social media.  She has seen my requests about cussing. My immediate reaction to her question was that I do not trip. Tripping means that someone has  upset me and if they did that, then I gave them the power to do it and I rarely grant people that kind of power. I handle it prayerfully, but definitely and then I move on, usually happily or atleast, satisfied.  However, since she she asked the question and I deeply love and respect her, I did spend a few months thinking about this question for which I already had the answer. I just wanted to chew on it a while.

Here’s the answer. The Bible says that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all.  It is the, “at all”, part that crystalized my response to this question. The very reason that darkness is not in God must because it is not a part of His nature and if it is not a part of His nature, there is a reason for it. If it is not a part of His nature then He probably does not want it to be a part of our nature.  Have I cussed? Not very often, but, “Yes, I have. “. Will I do it again? Probably, but I should not take it lightly and I won’t  because it is not a part of my new constitution. It does not promote life. The things that promote life are, “love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, temperance, gentleness, faith, forgiveness, etc., etc.”. 

That’s where I am headed, in the direction of Godliness, that is.  It’s hard, but I have settled quite a few potentially disasterous situations by shedding dark words and walking in the light.

Like each of us, I have lots of things to work on and cussing is just one of them.

Peace and love.