Lying And Keeping Secrets Will Shipwreck Your Faith

“And then she understood the devilish cunning of the enemies’ plan. By mixing a little truth with it they had made their lie far stronger.” ~ C.S. Lewis

Do you believe that it’s alright to tell a half truth?

A little lie is like a little pregnancy. Just as you can’t be a little pregnant, you can’t tell a little lie.

Lying is lying. There’s never any justification for it.

There are many reasons why people lie. Sometimes people lie because they are embarrassed about admitting the whole truth and they want to make themselves look better.

Often people lie because they’re afraid of how the other person will respond.

Usually, however, people lie to cover up their sins.

In any case, lying is wrong and never acceptable (Leviticus 19:11, Colossians 3:9). This includes lies of omission, which is when you withhold a truth.

In our family we have made a pact to have no family secrets. Through counseling and the 12 step recovery programs my husband and I went through years ago, we learned about the dangers of keeping secrets. Before my husband became a Christian, he had kept many secrets most of his life, which ended up hurting not only himself but those he loved the most: his family.

Carrying secrets will keep you sick. True intimacy comes only through being honest with others, especially with those you are closest to. When we keep secrets from people we love we put distance between us and them.

We can be dishonest with the whole world and get away with it, but we cannot hide from God.

God sees everything, including your heart. You can’t even hide your motives from Him (Psalm 90:8).

Satan, the enemy of our souls, is the father of lies. He will always try to lure you into living a dishonest life. So, when we lie, we are in a sense modeling after him, and not God.

The truth is that when we take a risk and tell even a teeny lie, we then become comfortable telling a bigger lie (tweet this). And, like rolling a small ball of snow down a hill, our lies just grow bigger and bigger until we have completely lost all sense of right and wrong.

This is called deception. We get deceived into believing that telling a little lie won’t hurt anyone.

Eventually, however, lying becomes a habit, a bad one. After years of living in this manner, you become desensitized to how wrong it is and even become comfortable with lying. Slowly, but surely, your life will become shallow and full of shame.

You may even feel that you are sinking, unable to break this pattern of behavior.

But that is a lie.

Here are some ways to prevent yourself from slipping into the trap of lying.

1. The minute you have lied you must go immediately and correct it.

Don’t give the devil time to talk yourself into justifying your dishonesty.

Be prepared for any consequence you may have to face but don’t fret about them. The truth is if you continue to walk in deceit, the consequence of shipwrecking your faith is a lot harsher than any human consequence you may face.

Ask God for the strength and courage to go and speak the truth to whomever you may have lied to.

Do it for Jesus, for His reputation, as well as for your relationship with Him.

2. Learn to make confession a daily discipline

I am assuming that you spend quality time with God daily. As a regular part of your quiet time with the Lord, get in the habit of confessing any sins you may feel you have. Ask the Holy Spirit to shine His light on anything in your life you may not be aware of.

Jeremiah 17:9 says, “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?“  This is a good reminder that we can’t trust ourselves.

3. Find an accountability partner

I cannot emphasize enough the importance of having people in your life that you can be accountable to. Find at least 2 people you can be accountable to. They should be people that have a solid walk with Christ, as well as someone that you trust.

We were never meant to manage our lives on our own. We need the help, guidance, support and prayers of others to help us along.

The enemy comes to steal, kill and destroy. Don’t let him rob you, of your integrity and from your relationship with Christ, by believing his lie that being even a little dishonest with others is acceptable.

Strive hard to live a pure, honest life in every situation. Realize that not even a half truth is acceptable.

May the Holy Spirit shed His light on you at all times, and may His convictions be gentle but strong enough to help you to live the abundant life that Jesus came and died for you to live.

Please leave me a comment below on the topic of lying. Please share any experience you may have in this area.