Guided reflection:

Jesus makes it clear that we should mean what we say and say what we mean. We say “I swear on a stack of Bibles”…meaning, I am telling the truth… or I am pledging my oath to you? Do you swear? Do you make one promise and do another?
Let your “YES” mean yes, and your “NO” mean no… I recall a friend stubbed her toe late at night when a guest at my house – she screamed “YEAH! NAY”. I asked her why she did that – she said because the Bible said not to swear, instead let your “yeah be yeah, and your nay be nay and she really wanted to swear! What are you teaching your children by your actions?

Guided Prayer:

“O God of the universe, teach me how to be authentic and real in my conversations. Help me not to just give the answer another wants at the moment when I know I cannot deliver… but help me be honest and true. May others know they can count on my word. Amen”