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The Truth about Lies

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people's bones and all uncleanliness.  Matthew 23:27 ESV

I lied. Again.

When my high school cheerleading coach noticed I'd lost a considerable amount of weight, I told her everything was fine. Even though it wasn't. My desire to fit in with the other girls on my team that were thin and in good shape overshadowed my physical, spiritual, and mental health needs. I lied about what I ate for breakfast, lunch, and dinner to lose weight. I believed being thin would cause people to love and accept me in a way I desperately wanted, and I would feel less broken on the inside.

As I tried to acquire the approval I thought I needed, I fought a battle I no longer had the energy to fight. The more lies I told, the harder it became to keep track of them. Living in constant terror of slipping up wore me down. I finally reached a point where changing my dysfunctional cycle became necessary and uncovering the truth of who I was and why I did what I did was inescapable.

Falling into the trap of wanting to impress people on the outside—while we are utterly oblivious to the corrupt state of our hearts on the inside—can cause damage as it did for the religious leaders with whom Jesus interacted. When we are preoccupied with keeping our exterior beautiful while our rotting interior is left untreated, we can develop spiritual cancer that causes us to die inside.

Authenticity teaches us we don't have to present ourselves a certain way for others to love and accept us. Unraveling lies we believe about ourselves instead of hiding behind them is crucial. I pretended to be okay when I wasn't. Not only was that unhealthy, it was ungodly.

When you find areas in your life where the lies prevail, seek forgiveness. Then turn to the God who sees nothing but beauty in you.

What is one area where you can work on being more authentic? Choose to be transparent when the next opportunity arises.

(Photo courtesy of pixabay.)

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Brandie Muncaster

Brandie J. Muncaster’s passion for writing is fueled from her desire to help people discover what it means to live and walk in their true identity in the Lord Jesus Christ. As someone who has known the powerful transforming work of God in her own life, she is passionate about seeing others experience the same. Through prayer and applying the Word, she ministers the love of God. Brandie is a devotion writer for VineWords: Devotions and More and Kingdom Winds. She is the author of the children’s book, Garden Tales: A Seed’s Story. Her work-in-progress is a memoir entitled A Story of Redemption, where she shares how God has brought inner healing through His Word. She and her husband have three children. She enjoys spending time with her children, playing sports, and visiting the coast or the mountains. Brandie also enjoys reading, painting, running, and homesteading. She is a member of Word Weavers of Charlotte, Hope Writer’s Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, and Kingdom Winds Collective.