Rich Dixon is building reliable connection.

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Trust is becoming more and more difficult.

Spam email that’s indistinguishable from the real thing. AI bot calls with too much specific information.

We might respond with fear. Don’t trust anyone. They’re all scammers and thieves.

There might be a better idea.

Be more human. Create communities, whether digital or face-to-face, in which trust is foundational.

Like most human problems, this lack-of-trust problem isn’t new. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus included a warning about swearing oaths… sort of a foreign concept to us, but the religious leaders in Jesus’ time were quite skilled at making promises with loopholes.

Jesus wanted none of that nonsense. If you’re going to make a promise, your word should be enough. “Let your yes be yes, and your no be no.”

Period.

Consider that guidance in the context of our society where it seems like every interaction requires lawyers and multipage contracts with language nobody really understands.

I’m not blind to reality. But I’m asking myself, and maybe you, what does it mean to Let my yes be yes, and my no be no?

Within the FREEDOM TOUR community? Within the community of my blog readers? Within my neighborhood?

Can people trust my YES? Even when it’s uncomfortable, or when it costs me something? Am I willing to say NO, rather than waffling?

Sadly, I’m afraid I’m pretty good at weaseling and making excuses.

Seems like a small thing, this issue of keeping promises. But Jesus talked about it right after he spoke about murder and adultery, so apparently, he thought it was a big deal.

Let’s don’t look back and beat ourselves up. Jesus doesn’t do that.

Let’s seek his help in building communities based on trust, where folks can trust each other. And where there’s grace when mistakes happen.

Where yes is yes, and no is no.