Using the Lord's Name in Vain

Not too long ago, as I was praying with some people, an article that I read almost 20 yrs ago came back to me. The article spoke about using the Lord’s name in vain.

And right about now, the question that begs asking is… how does praying equate to using the Lord’s name in vain?

See, I’m sure many of us are familiar with a common syndrome in prayer. It goes something like this: (read out lout, with a constipated face and with the most earnest voice you can conjure up) “Lord, Lord, we come before you today, Lord, and Lord, we ask that Lord, you will bless us Lord. Lord, we pray Lord, that Lord you will be glorified Lord. Lord, that Lord you would be Lord over us all. Lord, Lord, we ask today, Lord, that you hear our prayers, Lord… etc”

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not mocking these folks. And many times, these are the people who pray a lot. People with a healthy prayer life, as opposed to mine. But reading the article some 18 years ago, it really left a deep impression on me, since I was an impressionable boy of 12 back then, I had been rather puzzled by why a person has to use the word “Lord” so much in his prayer. It seemed to be a mark of fervency, yet at the same time, it seems to also betray a certain lack of thought and weighted-ness.

A person who uses the word “Lord” that way seems to be using it more as a stop-gap, when his thoughts could not keep up with the speed of his rambling, and so he needed to fill the silence. He seems to be more pre-occupied with a certain form that his prayer takes on, rather than the actual words he meant to say.

And so yes, the writer of the article took umbrage at that. And please dun say that because “Lord” is not really His name, the accusation is a tad harsh. Unless you happen to be referring to, say, Cheezels when you used the word “Lord”, you are, in fact, running the risk of calling upon the Lord in vain, using meaningless and repetitive words.

So let’s all try to show a little more self-awareness in how we pray, shall we? As much as the heart is right, it needs to be backed up with our actions as well. After all, that was what Jesus was referring to when he said that “the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak”, isn’t it? We can’t be hiding behind the right spirit, and allow the flesh to continue being weak.

What's Left?

So here I am, more than a week passing since I finished two very very intense semesters that nearly took my life.

And with a whole tonne of things still ahead of me that I need to finish real soon, I’m instead choosing to just screw to all, and laze around doing nothing. Hehz… in the short run, at least.

Tomorrow is Rulin’s wedding. And to get into the mood, since I AM the emcee for both her church service as well as the wedding dinner, I re-watched two of my fav movies. “Closer”, starring the incredibly lovely Natalie Portman, as well as “Serendipity”, starring the English rose Kate Beckinsale. And it was quite a curious experience, watching the two side by side.

Serendipity speaks of a love so strong, that a chance meeting could bind two almost-strangers together until fate finally allowed them to end up together. And yet Closer portrays love as being so fragile that Natalie Portman’s character can go from absolutely in love to “I don’t love you anymore” in the space of an epiphany, while staying totally believable at the same time.

Funny how life itself can be so dichotomized, ain't it?

I guess the point is that its harder and harder to celebrate weddings for me. I mean, I can be happy for my friends. I really can. But that seems to be just about all I can do. There used to be a time where weddings would make me happy, and I would be energized while helping my friends out. Now, when I hear of weddings, or I help out in one, I have the emotional reaction the equivalent of buying the papers.

What makes such a realization so devastating is that less than a year ago, on the 17th of November 2008, I had posted an entry, where I said that I am banking on marriage as my last bastion of confidence. And now, I don’t even seem to have any zest for that.

Whatever the hell is happening to me?

Pls Lord, don’t let me end up as one of those bitter old men. I still wanna be someone who has a purpose and a passion in life. Something that I believe in, that gets me excited and makes me angry over.