Proverbs 10:9
A good man has firm footing, but a crook will slip and fall.
The
Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by
permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois
60188. All rights reserved.
A few weeks ago as we
emerged from church, Timothy was telling me all about Cain and Abel…how
Cain was so dishonest and unkind – and how Cain even killed his brother,
Abel. I agreed with Timothy about how terribly Cain behaved, and he
looked up at me and asked, “Did you know him?” Yes, I appear to be as
old as the stories of the Garden of Eden!
Our church-wide Sunday
school curriculum focuses on the “Creation Story” from Genesis this
month. Next month, the study will be on Adam and Eve…and making good
choices. I was reviewing the teaching guide for pre-K in preparation to
substitute this Sunday, and I noticed that the theme for October 11th
is “Making Good Choices.” The following Sunday, the theme is “Sometimes
Bad Things Happen to Good People,”…and the FOLLOWING Sunday, it is
“Sometimes GOOD things Happen to BAD People!”
I am glad that our
little ones are learning lessons about honesty and integrity, because
playing fast and loose with the truth and how we treat others is a
slippery slope. Sadly, lots of children learn at an early age how to
manipulate the truth to suit their own agendas. They figure out how to
pin blame on others, to deny culpability, or simply to make up things to
sway outcomes in their favor. And sometimes, they learn to take out
their frustrations, quite literally, on their siblings!
By the
time we are adults, we have often managed to make a bigger mess by
trying to cover our tracks. It may seem like some people “get away with
murder,” but almost always, attempts to be “shady” backfire. The truth
has a way of coming out – sometimes in unpleasant and embarrassing
ways. Attempts to explain away misdeeds often end up making us look
more foolish than ever. How we treat others will reflect on our
character…and follow us into every arena – business, social, personal
and spiritual.
Sometimes a simple and sincere, “I’m sorry” or “I
was wrong” would serve us far better than the lies, exaggerations and
manipulations we offer. Often, pausing to check our thoughts, words and
actions BEFORE we do something would save everyone a world of
heartache, frustration – and possibly - embarrassment.
God
calls us to operate honestly and with integrity. With His help, we can
do the work on the “front end” to prevent any opportunity for a need to
“backpedal” after the fact. We can ask Him to help us always speak the
truth…to walk in His ways and demonstrate kindness and integrity in all
that we say and do. When we walk with God and honor our commitment to
Him…when we operate in honesty and fairness…there is no need to even
think about exposure and consequences.
Aren’t you ready to walk
upright…to live with a clear conscience in the truths of Jesus Christ?
It’s never too late to make this change and “come clean” in His name.
Won’t you call on Him to help you this? Will this be the day that you
regain your firm footing with Jesus? Don’t you think it should be?
©2015 Debbie Robus
Showing posts with label sugarcoating the truth. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sugarcoating the truth. Show all posts
Daily Devotional for July 31, 2015
Ephesians 4:25-27
What this adds up to, then, is this: no more lies, no more pretense. Tell your neighbor the truth. In Christ’s body we’re all connected to each other, after all. When you lie to others, you end up lying to yourself.
Go ahead and be angry. You do well to be angry—but don’t use your anger as fuel for revenge. And don’t stay angry. Don’t go to bed angry. Don’t give the Devil that kind of foothold in your life.
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
My mother always taught me that “if you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.” At the other end of the spectrum, my Mam-ma Polly frequently seemed to operate more in the “speak your mind now and worry about the consequences later” mode. And I think there is room for a healthy balance between these two stances.
I try to be very fair and balanced with others…particularly as I write these devotionals. I understand that not all people believe as I do on a variety of subjects…and that’s okay. But I have found that often, when we sit quietly on the sidelines, others wrongly assume that we believe exactly as they do…and that we fully support their expressed opinions. And this can be hurtful to everyone.
A few weeks ago, I was attending a meeting in which some comments were made that deeply wounded several people…including me. The persons who made them initially assumed that everyone in the room felt as they did…so they “went at it” with wild abandon. I’ll admit…I initially willed myself to stay quiet. But then another lady spoke up and explained why she disagreed with what was said…and one by one, more of us spoke up and expressed our feelings. I wish I could say this made a difference…that the ugly talk was stifled. But it wasn’t…and some of us came away more offended than anything else…but yes, we were angry, too.
The anger and disappointment affected me in a profound way…but I did not seek revenge. I prayed…a lot. I asked God to show me how to overcome my feelings of resentment toward those who spoke their own truth…to keep me from allowing the devil to have the last laugh in this. And He has done this. I am at a calm and peaceful place where I can actually encounter these people and not feel antagonistic – or even judgmental of them. I didn’t come to this resolution overnight, but I am grateful that God has begun to heal my heart.
I am also glad that I spoke out. Otherwise, I think I would have always felt a little ashamed…like I was living a lie by allowing others to assume that I agreed with them on this issue. And I’ll admit…speaking honestly about my views on several political and social issues has “cost” me some friendships...or at least greatly changed how we interact and the frequency of our contacts. And that is unfortunate…but also freeing. Let’s be honest…living a lie takes its toll.
I hope and pray that I am never judgmental or rude…that I don’t “speak my mind” to someone in such a way as to anger or offend them. By remaining truthful, I trust that God will bless my efforts and soften the ears of those who hear my words, so that they accept them – and me – in the spirit of Christian brotherhood and sisterhood. I’ve tried to “sugarcoat the truth” before in an effort to spare another person’s feelings. And I can tell you, when this backfires (and it often does), it’s a royal disaster!
At the end of the day, our only responsibility is to please God…and remaining truthful honors our commitment to Him. By seeking His wisdom and guidance as we speak the truth, we demonstrate our faith in Him to handle how our words are received…and put the devil in his place simultaneously! Honesty IS the best policy! How truthful are you being these days?
©2015 Debbie Robus
What this adds up to, then, is this: no more lies, no more pretense. Tell your neighbor the truth. In Christ’s body we’re all connected to each other, after all. When you lie to others, you end up lying to yourself.
Go ahead and be angry. You do well to be angry—but don’t use your anger as fuel for revenge. And don’t stay angry. Don’t go to bed angry. Don’t give the Devil that kind of foothold in your life.
Scripture quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs, CO. All rights reserved.
My mother always taught me that “if you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.” At the other end of the spectrum, my Mam-ma Polly frequently seemed to operate more in the “speak your mind now and worry about the consequences later” mode. And I think there is room for a healthy balance between these two stances.
I try to be very fair and balanced with others…particularly as I write these devotionals. I understand that not all people believe as I do on a variety of subjects…and that’s okay. But I have found that often, when we sit quietly on the sidelines, others wrongly assume that we believe exactly as they do…and that we fully support their expressed opinions. And this can be hurtful to everyone.
A few weeks ago, I was attending a meeting in which some comments were made that deeply wounded several people…including me. The persons who made them initially assumed that everyone in the room felt as they did…so they “went at it” with wild abandon. I’ll admit…I initially willed myself to stay quiet. But then another lady spoke up and explained why she disagreed with what was said…and one by one, more of us spoke up and expressed our feelings. I wish I could say this made a difference…that the ugly talk was stifled. But it wasn’t…and some of us came away more offended than anything else…but yes, we were angry, too.
The anger and disappointment affected me in a profound way…but I did not seek revenge. I prayed…a lot. I asked God to show me how to overcome my feelings of resentment toward those who spoke their own truth…to keep me from allowing the devil to have the last laugh in this. And He has done this. I am at a calm and peaceful place where I can actually encounter these people and not feel antagonistic – or even judgmental of them. I didn’t come to this resolution overnight, but I am grateful that God has begun to heal my heart.
I am also glad that I spoke out. Otherwise, I think I would have always felt a little ashamed…like I was living a lie by allowing others to assume that I agreed with them on this issue. And I’ll admit…speaking honestly about my views on several political and social issues has “cost” me some friendships...or at least greatly changed how we interact and the frequency of our contacts. And that is unfortunate…but also freeing. Let’s be honest…living a lie takes its toll.
I hope and pray that I am never judgmental or rude…that I don’t “speak my mind” to someone in such a way as to anger or offend them. By remaining truthful, I trust that God will bless my efforts and soften the ears of those who hear my words, so that they accept them – and me – in the spirit of Christian brotherhood and sisterhood. I’ve tried to “sugarcoat the truth” before in an effort to spare another person’s feelings. And I can tell you, when this backfires (and it often does), it’s a royal disaster!
At the end of the day, our only responsibility is to please God…and remaining truthful honors our commitment to Him. By seeking His wisdom and guidance as we speak the truth, we demonstrate our faith in Him to handle how our words are received…and put the devil in his place simultaneously! Honesty IS the best policy! How truthful are you being these days?
©2015 Debbie Robus
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