Practical Commandments

   Christians are sometimes mocked because of our beliefs. Some people say that we believe in an outdated myth. Some people say that the rules we live by do not take into account changing times.
  I was reading over some of the commandments that the members of the Church of Jesus-Christ of Latter Day Saints follow ( or at least try to follow) a few years back. One things that I noticed is that many of those commandments were actually practical. Many of those rules made sense from a pure common sense standpoint. It made me start to think about some of the things that Christian religions do. (I'm not implying that other faiths do not have similar views. I'm not familiar enough with any of them to say such things. I'm sticking to what I know.)
  I'm going to use the Ten Commandments as an example. There's been a lot of controversy over them. Many people think that the laws of this country were based on the Ten Commandments because the founders of this country intended it to be a Christian one. I'm not enough of a student of history to make a statement one way or another. I believe that many of our laws were based on the Ten Commandments because they are simply common sense.
  At this point some of you may have stopped reading or are laughing hysterically. How could anything as old as the Ten Commandments still be applicable today? Before I explain I would like to make one thing clear. I am not speaking for any group or denomination. I am speaking for myself only. This is my opinion.
   I'll start with the first three. Those are the ones that deal with our relationship to God. How could these be practical to one who does not believe in God or any higher power? It says that there is a God and that you should not worship anything else nor should you make anything that could be worshipped. It is also about setting your priorities. For a Christian, worshipping God and not allowing other things to become more important is a priority. If you happen not to believe in a higher power these is still some worth in the commandments.
  Another way to interpret this is to ask, what is you goal? What do you want to achieve? What is important to you? When you have a goal, work toward that goal. Don't lose your focus. Don't try do much at once. To me this says don't multitask on things that are truly important. I know that multitasking is considered to be a good skill. Personally I don't think it is possible to truly focus on more than one thing at a time.
  Don't take the name of the Lord in vain. This is a pretty clear one for Christians. How would it apply to those outside the faith? What is practical about this commandment? I think that it means don't use language for a hurtful purpose. Don't misuse words. Don't use words like "retard", "gay"  or "loser" as ways to hurt others.
    Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. This is another one that might not seem so common sense. This one is about balance. There is a time to work and there is a time to rest. We need both things. We need to be active and productive, but we also need time to rest and relax.
  Honor your father and mother. There are some who would argue that their parents were abusive, mean or absent, why should they get any honor? This is one that has a much broader application. All of us at one time or another have had someone, even if it isn't a birth parent, who has cared for us. This could be a mentor, a good friend a grandmother or other person you looked up to. Honor that person for what they did for you. Do you best to be a good mentor, friend, role model etc. in return.
  Don't kill. I don't think I need to elaborate on that. This is something we can all agree on.
  Don't commit adultery. Adultery according to my dictionary means being intimate without someone other than your spouse. Some people would say that this is outdated. Who cares? No one gets hurt. What's wrong in having a little fun? This commandment has to do with keeping your word. If you have made a promise to be faithful to one person, then you need to keep your promise. It's about being the kind of person that can be trusted.
 Do not steal. This is another one that needs no explanation. We all agree that it is not good to steal. This also includes things like shoplifting and burning copies of CDs and movies. A big recording artist may not notice the lost income when people burn copies of music, but a smaller artist does. It's still stealing and you shouldn't do it. Period.
  Don't bear false witness. This means don't lie. This also means don't spread gossip or rumors. It may be tempting to pass along some juicy tidbit about someone. You may not think that anyone will get hurt, right. It's not so harmless. A destroyed reputation is not something easily repaired. People have suffered lasting damage from accusations and other things that have turned out not to be true. Think about what you say when it comes to other people. If you don't want it said about you, don't say it about someone else.
  Don't covet. If I read my dictionary right, covet means envy. Envy is not a good thing. It means you are both discontented with what you have and have a strong desire to have someone else possessions for your own. Envy is bad because it can lead you to steal, lie or do whatever it takes to get the thing that you don't have and someone else does. It can lead you to violate most of the commandments listed above.
  There are some out there who would say that the Ten Commandments are nothing more than an attempt on the part of Christians to force others to live those values. While they maybe be found in Christian scriptures, they are also laden with common sense. If we all lived by them, the world would be a better place.