Monday, March 9, 2009

Handling the Truth

Sometimes it's difficult to face the truth. Sometimes it's easier to believe a lie or a half-truth. It's not that we don't desire to know the truth...we usually do- it's just that sometimes we have a hard time accepting the truth because it's not what we hoped for. A memorable movie quote comes to mind- "You can't handle the truth!" 

"...Raw truth is never popular. But here it is, bluntly spoken: Because you run roughshod over the poor and take teh bread right out of their mouths, you're never going to move into the luxury homes you have built." Amos 5: 10-11a (MSG)

The truth is that we're flawed...beyond our own repair. We've fallen short in numerous ways. In fact, sometimes we lose hope- thinking we're never going to be good enough to deserve God's love. That's hard to admit, it's hard to handle. But it is quite necessary to admit the fact that we are too helpless to help ourselves. For only when we do this do we allow ourselves to seek help from someone else- God. 

Amos told the "raw truth" to a people who had strayed from God and were not willing to admit fault or seek to change their ways. Reading Amos is challenging and tough, but it's a great read during this season of Lent- a season to renew our devotion to the God that loves that we need a Savior. Amos was not popular among his peers- he was too honest for their liking. But he was absolutely necessary.

How can you be honest with yourself? Maybe there's a difficult truth that you've been ignoring or denying. It may be difficult to confess, but it is only by showing our wounds that we allow God to begin to heal us. Seek God this week, be brutally honest with yourself and with God. Allow the healing process to begin.

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