Honesty: Pathway to holiness and key to healthy relationships

In the matters of honesty, remember o virtuous woman, God knows our hearts better than we do. Like David, we need to pray: ‘Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts; And see if there be any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting’ Psalms 139vs23-24.

We need to give the Holy Spirit permission to expose our hearts. That takes courage and a commitment to embrace the pain in order to get to the place of healing. When we are dishonest about the feelings inside and have closed our heart to the pain, we may think we have shielded ourselves from hurt. BUT the truth is we have not. It is like having a thorn stuck in your hand. Ouch! It definitely hurts.

If you close your hand on the thorn so that no one sees it, it soon becomes infected and even more painful. However, if you allow someone to remove the thorn and cleanse the wound, you will still experience pain, but the end result will be healing and life instead of continued wounding and pain—absolute relief! The tearful becomes the joyful. So with our emotional wounds—we must be willing to open our hearts to the Holy Spirit so He can remove the source of pain and begin the healing process.

Virtuous woman, take time this week to ask the Lord to show you some of the false beliefs that are guiding your life. Some of the false beliefs could include the following: My worth as a person is based on how well I perform and other people’s opinion of me; If I am really honest and express what is inside, God/people will reject me; I need the approval and affirmation of certain people in order to feel good about myself. Sounding familiar?

Remember, pretence is a malady of the heart, and one of the suicidal deceptive elements of human society. May you portray to be what you are not and thereby build an honest and healthy society.n