Reverencing His Name

I was struggling to find a new way to present a lesson on not taking the Lord’s name in vain. Though I had thought about this lesson for a couple of weeks, my mind was blank, and I dreaded seeing the polite stares of Relief Society sisters being presented a lesson they had heard innumerable times since childhood.

What new idea could I incorporate into the lesson to make a familiar theme seem new?

I sat in the family room searching copies of the Ensign for ideas while my 20-month-old daughter, Ashley, played quietly beside me. We had often read together from a child’s book about the Savior’s life, so when I came to an issue with his picture on the cover, I held it up to her.

“Ashley, who is this?” I asked.

“Jeju,” she replied, giving his name her own pronunciation. I smiled and resumed my search.

Ashley bent over the magazine in my lap. When she spoke, it was to herself—not to me.

“Jesus, Jesus,” she said softly, this time pronouncing his name correctly. Then she kissed his face twice and looked at the picture for a moment.

“Jesus,” she said again, and again gave the face a tender kiss.

A sweetness filled the room, and I knew I was seeing in my daughter a love for the Savior born of experiences before she came to me. With one word and three kisses, she had taught me greatly about using the Lord’s name with reverence.