I have pretty much resigned myself to hearing profanity. I think this might be a bad thing. It means I have become numb to it. I do enjoy movies and there is swearing in most movies. Sometimes it is more offensive than others. Sometimes it seems almost appropriate, which again says something about me. Some neighbors or relatives swear as part of who they are. They have always sworn and it seems they always will. There are many types of swear words. Some take God's name in vain. Some are vulgar and sexual in nature. In a society of blurred lines, there is no clearly defined boundary. Sometimes it is the tone or way a word is spit out. Sometimes it is repeated so often that your defenses come down.

The Bible talks about the tongue. It likens it to a spark that can set fires, to a rudder which can steer a big ship, to a bridle, a bit in a horse's mouth that directs or controls the animal. The tongue is all that. There are people who never swear and yet they might gossip or slander others. There are those who don't take God's name in vain, yet will lie.

I think the media has directed our footsteps in the culture. Songs and scripts are written and heard through television and radio. Directors stand on their rights to see scripts be unchanged.

What can I do? I can write about how I feel. I can choose not to use profanity myself. I can pray. I can educate. I can confess. I know I have sworn in the past. I tolerate swearing. I don't let people know that it bothers me. Writing about it is a start. I don't particularly feel 'holier than thou' in writing this. It is something that has been on my mind for a while. I guess what triggered this was a movie I saw recently that had a lot of swearing. It was pretty vulgar, but I tolerated it because it had an otherwise good, or intelligent story line and good character development. I felt let down because it could have been such a great movie without all the swearing. It was unnecessary to the story.

There is a measure of self control in not swearing. It is a discipline. The shock value is meant to get people's attention; perhaps to impress. It is also an adult characteristic which is copied by children and young adults. I would ask the reader to search his or her heart and the next time you hear something vulgar, offensive, that takes God's name in vain, ask if this is necessary, is it worth being upset about...

'God, please forgive me for the times I have taken your name in vain. Forgive me for tolerating vulgar language. Help me to learn to control my own tongue. In Jesus name, Amen.'