Being a Reliable Christian

"But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your 'yes' be yes and your 'no' be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation." - James 5:12

Christians need to be reliable people. If we tell someone we are going to be somewhere at sometime, we need to be there. If we tell someone we are going to pay them back, we need to pay them back. A Christian's word should be reliable and trustworthy.

Granted that James also tells us that rather than telling people we will do something, we should make known to them the contingency that the in order for us to do it, the Lord must will it (James 4:13-17).

I know this isn't a whole lot but it really is a simple principle and I don't want to over-complicate things. Here are three practical ways to live reliably.

1. Don't say yes so much. Many of us, including myself, say yes to everyone because there is a certain level of guilt created when we say no. But the reality is that in order to be reliable as James says, we must say no sometimes. So get off your yes-man horse and start saying no (lovingly).

2. Mark things on a calendar. It's easy to forget about an appointment or agreement you made to someone so mark it on your calendar or put an alarm in your phone right when the agreement is made.

3. Stay focused. A lot of times we fill our lives up with things that we aren't actually passionate about simply because the opportunity provided itself. Say no to opportunities that you aren't passionate about and say yes to those you are.

Blessings.