Have you ever done something that negatively affected someone else, but you didn't even know it? Though we may do something innocently, it still can hurt others. Could there be a similar situation with sin? Could we be committing a sin that we don't even know about?

There is a certain sin Christians can easily overlook, but in actuality it is a transgression of God's Third Commandment: "You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain" (Exodus 20:7). Living in this world, we hear this commandment broken dozens of times each day. Try counting how many times you hear people spout off—"oh my..." or even worse expressions that can't be repeated in this article! If we occasionally slip up and say "oh my..." (or worse), we need to repent and strive to overcome that.

But you don't have to say God's name directly to break the Third Commandment. People often overlook or ignore seemingly innocent expressions known as euphemisms.

Dictionary.com defines a "euphemism" as: "The act or an example of substituting a mild, indirect, or vague term for one considered harsh, blunt, or offensive."

Over time, phrases and words have developed in the English language that are substitutes for God's name. Because people knew it was wrong to openly blaspheme God's name, they invented words that sounded similar and said those instead. Common euphemisms are "gosh," "golly," "oh my," "my goodness" and "doggone." These were all replacements for taking God's name in vain without actually saying it.

Some people commonly exclaim "Jesus Christ" or just "Christ" in anger or surprise. Euphemisms that have developed for these words are "gee," "gees," "gesh," "jeepers creepers" and "jimminy cricket." Another common euphemism is putting the word "holy" in front of another word. An example would be the phrase "holy cow." "Holy" is a word that applies to God and the things God calls "holy." Cows are not holy and neither should we use such an important word so lightly.

For those who struggle with euphemisms, David's words in Psalm 19:14 are both instructional and inspiring: "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer."

But perhaps the greatest lesson of the Third Commandment is found in the second half of this verse. As opposed to lightly using God's name, David praises God's name from his heart. The purpose of the Third Commandment is not merely to stop us from improperly using God's name, but is to teach us that God's name is holy and should be reverently praised. It shouldn't be just another word we say without thought or twisted and perverted into a meaningless euphemism.

Bad habits die hard. Oftentimes, the most effective way to prevent sin is to find an alternative. When something exciting, disturbing or sad happens—focus hard on saying words such as "awesome," "interesting" or "that's terrible"—or focus on saying nothing at all! King Solomon wrote, "In the multitude of words sin is not lacking, but he who restrains his lips is wise" (Proverbs 10:19).