Truth or Dare

You’ve been there, we all have. Whether it’s that chocolate donut, the open freeway, that pair of boots that you know cost more than the electric bill...or worse. That little voice inside you tells you NO, but oh-another one tells you yes, yes, yes.

What’s your biggest temptation right now? What’s the one you remember from your past the most? The one that really made you feel the regret and shame? Maybe it was from your childhood. Maybe it was yesterday. Whatever the case for you, temptation leaves a mark. Likely we experience it every day, and depending on how we handle it we can be heavy with guilt or exhilerated with relief.

The other day I was remembering a time when I was tempted to lie. A competition in our school had two girls and myself in a trio. We practiced our song and got our harmony down but for some reason I kept replacing one word. Sure enough, during competition I sang that word wrong and we just sang right past it even though we three knew it happened. One of the girls blamed the other and I just rolled right along with it. That poor, innocent girl was mortified and vehemently denied that it was her. The other girl was so mean to her and I didn’t step in to diffuse the situation and admit that it was me.

Hopefully, the sweet individual wasn’t scarred for life, but I can not get the guilt I felt out of my head. I don’t remember if the truth ever came out or if we won or lost, I can only remember the song we sang and the guilt I felt. Every time I sing that hymn I’m reminded.

When we give in to temptation we often suffer the consequences. But, oh man, the relief that can come from resisting. There are times it seems that a “little white lie” is the easier way to go. They may not seem like a big deal, but they lead to bigger lies and bigger guilt. And bigger hurt. When someone lies to me it breaks my trust. Sometimes it even breaks my heart. It hurts to think that I cannot be trusted enough to have the truth told to me that someone would have to lie. Especially if it’s someone I love.

Turn those thoughts around and it makes telling the truth even easier. If we could ever teach our kids to think about the effects of what they are about to say, maybe they would tell the truth from the get go.

I have a long list of lies that I regret. But I can tell you, if I had it to do over I’d take the whoopin, the grounding, the cold shoulder, whatever punishment the truth would have gotten me, instead of the loss of trust that I recieved by lying. Soon, I was punished for things I didn’t do just because I couldn’t be trusted to tell the truth. Trust is something that is very hard to retrieve.

Ironically there are things I’ll go to the grave swearing are truth, because they are, even though they may be hard to admit. Someone says of me, “Don’t ask her opinion unless you really want the truth.” But the point here today is, the truth really will set you free.

It took true love; honest, unwavering love to turn myself from my past ways. I learned that I wasn’t the only one I could trust, and I didn’t really trust myself. Didn’t really LOVE myself.

When I realized that I could be forgiven over and over again and I could be truly loved no matter my faults; I wanted to be a better person. I wanted to be a bigger person. How could I expect the truth when I didn’t give it…I began to trust myself with telling the truth. I started to understand that I was worth the truth and I could truly be valued enough that the truth wouldn’t hurt me as much as the repercussions from lying.

No matter the circumstance, whether you regret what you did, are afraid of what will happen if you’re found out, even if it means the death of a relationship, truth is always the best. Likely it’s already realized and lying about it just adds to the wound that is undoubtably already deep.

Judas lied and the guilt killed him. David lied and it killed a good and innocent man and left David with unbearable guilt. Judas didn’t have an opportunity to repent, but David did. Thus, his loyalty and faithfullness were strengthened.

We aren’t perfect, but our Savior is. And because of Him, we can be forgiven, we are loved, and we can change.

Let the truth set you free. I double dog dare ya.

Luke 21:36

Luke 23:34

John 8:32-36

John 3:16