…Then my second son asked me, “Mum, was it worth it?”
We are so blessed in our God.
Our God has the power to create the world and to heal the sick and to bring souls back from death and to begin the world and to end the world and to cast out demons with just a word…
“A man who had the spirit of an unclean demon cried out with a loud voice, ‘Ah! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.’ But Jesus rebuked him, saying, ‘Be silent, and come out of him!’ And when the demon had thrown him down in the midst, he came out of him, having done him no harm. And they were all amazed and said to one another, ‘What is this word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out.’” (Luke 4:31-370).
Our words have power. We are made in the image and likeness of God and our words – in the image of God – have power. When we chose to use sinful words, we lead ourselves into sin. When we chosen good words, we lead ourselves closer to God.
Little Saint Jacinta, who was one of the shepherd children of Fatima to whom Our Lady of Fatima appeared, encouraged the other two Saints in her company to stop all swearing. She decided that her words could be used only for good. And I have been thinking about that today.
You see, I use my words carelessly. Sometimes – in anger – I swear. Sometimes – in laziness – I chose bad words instead of good ones. And sometimes – in sinfulness – I just make all the wrong sort of choices…
And I have been thinking about that today as I have been thinking about my life in general. You see, words have so much power.
And the other day I swore, and then my second son asked me, “Mum, was it worth it?”
And I have to say that I experienced profound shame at hearing that question from that little boy. You see, he was right. It is never worth it to sin, and certainly never worth it to sin in such a manner, especially when it is easy enough to choose a good word over a bad one.
And I have been thinking about that today as I have been choosing the words with which to write. For it seems to me that all my words can be for good. After all it is not a terribly difficult thing for me to chose my words wisely. After all, a little nine year old girl Saint was able to do just that. And if she could do that, what excuse could I possibly have for my own terrible choice of words?
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.
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