When a man makes a vow to the LORD or takes an oath to obligate himself by a pledge, he must not break his word but must do everything he said. – Numbers 30:2

Today's Scripture Reading (December 26, 2021): Numbers 30

John Green in "The Fault in Our Stars" includes this bit of dialogue;

"Sometimes people don't understand the promises they're making when they make them," I said.

Isaac shot me a look. "Right, of course. But you keep the promise anyway. That's
what love is. Love is keeping the promise anyway. Don't you believe in true love?"

Green is right. The words "I promise" roll off our tongues so easily, sometimes without us even thinking about what we are really saying.  It is so easy to say the words "I promise" without feeling the impact.  The value of I promise is that it means that I will do what I have said I will do. But most of us know the other side of the equation. Most of us have failed at following through on our promises. Maybe we forget, or we promise things over which we have no control. But often, Green is right. We fail at our promises because we don't love enough. 

Maybe we promise too much. We don't feel the weight of the words, so we don't take them seriously enough. We promise to do things that might seem small to us. It is so easy to make a promise to a friend who is having a tough day that we will pray for them, but then never give them a second thought after we have parted. One of the traits that set promise keepers apart from promise breakers is that they are careful with their promises and often have found a way to follow through on the commitment, setting limits on how far the vow might extend. I have a friend who never says "I'll pray for you" without setting limits on the prayer. First, he limits the amount of time for the prayer. I will pray for you for the next two weeks. And next, he places your picture in a PowerPoint file representing his prayer list. But if he says he will pray for you, you can be sure that he will follow through on his promise.

It is so easy to get caught up in the difference between the sexes mentioned in the passage.  The instructions seem so archaic to our enlightened minds.  But if we get caught up in those differences, we miss the point. We are to be people of our word. It should be so simple. Do what you say you will do. Don't jump too fast to say the words "I promise." Feel the weight of the words and remember them. And then, be people who keep their promises.

Be a person of your word today.  But don't accomplish being a promise keeper by not making any promises. Instead, be careful in making the big promises and follow through on the little ones.  We are designed to be people of our word, and we can do it!

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Numbers 31