“You’re after . . truth from the inside out.” Psalm 51:6 The Message
“Secrets easily form the seeds from which deceit grows.”
My thoughts today are about “secrets.”
Superficial alteration is not enough when serious change is required. Such efforts give you only superficial results. “Above all else, guard your heart, for it affects everything you do.” Proverbs 4:23 NLT. It’s not the habits that are usually at issue first; it’s a matter in the heart where you allow habits to form and control. Changing the appearance of something is not to be confused with changing its reality.
Be careful; secrets easily form the seeds from which deceit grows. Secrets are usually where a person tries to hide their wrongdoing and its resulting shame; doing so is only temporary and rarely successful. Secrets are a heavy weight on the soul. The longer you hold them, the more they wear away your strength to be open. Openness allows you to live without pretense, free to be real, and authentic not artificial.
My Dad taught me that, “Nothing remains a secret long, if more than one person knows about it – and God always knows!” It was uncanny how Dad always seemed to know when I was being less than forthright about the places I had been or the things I had done. I think that ultimately kept me more careful and authentic than I might have been.
Here’s what Jesus warned about secrets, “Beware of . . hypocrisy. The time is coming when everything will be revealed; all that is secret will be made public. Whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered behind closed doors will be shouted from the housetops for all to hear!” Luke 12:1-3 NLT. That should make anyone think twice before keeping secrets.
The English word, “sincere” is thought to come from two Latin words “sine – without, and cera – wax.” A less than honest sculptor or potter would cover a crack in the stone with wax to disguise it. His work could not be described as “sincere,” not as it appeared to be. To be sincere means to be absolutely authentic inside and out, the same in public or private, whatever the situation or company. “Sincerity and truth is what You require, Lord.” Psalm 51:6 Today’s English Version.
God looks at a person’s life from the inside out. The Bible explains why. “The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks on the outward appearance, but God looks upon the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7 NIV. Wrongly, we willingly accept external changes as sufficient, excusing for ourselves and accepting from others what is more about cosmetic appearance than character. God says that is not good enough.
About a year ago, our eldest granddaughter gave me a CD of songs she enjoys from her university campus Bible Study; I have especially enjoyed a song titled, “From the Inside Out.” The lyrics are: “My heart and my soul, I give You control. Consume me from the inside out. Lord, let justice and praise, Become my embrace, To love You from the inside out . . And the cry of my heart, Is to bring You praise, From the inside out, Lord, my soul cries out . .” Hillsong United. Let those words become the genuine cry of yours and my heart at all times.
My prayer for you today is that you be sincere before God and authentic with all others.