No Shame in Telling the Truth

One day at work, I recall being informed during one of our department meetings about an incident from the day before. The staff member that closed did not lock the building doors before leaving. Fortunately, no one entered the building and cleaned us out. A well-meaning customer saw the doors slide open and then slid them back closed. We were lucky! The experience reminded us that mistakes happen. Especially when we are distracted. But it didn’t end there. The person responsible decided that the best way to move on from the situation was to tell a, in their mind, “small” fib. Unfortunately for them, it was swiftly debunked by the end of the day. This resulted in this person losing some credibility among their peers. If they had just fessed up, then they would have appeared as human as the rest of us that make mistakes.

Telling a lie seems to require no effort at all. Telling the truth, however, might cause some harm. The truth (no puns intended here!) is that both have the potential of being harmful. It’s possible that the truth will hurt more immediately than the delay associated with lying. In the scenario I shared, sharing the truth would have been a little embarrassing for the person that forgot to lock up. But in the long run, it would have been out there and everyone would have learned from it, even showing them a little grace. Instead, because they chose to tell a lie. The result was that when it was uncovered, their peers emerged trusting this person a little less. So even when a lie is told, harm is still done. Even though the impact may not be visible as immediately as telling the truth.

When we have to tell a truth that may be a little embarrassing for us or that may be harmful to someone else, we feel that all through our entire body. That emotion is undoubtedly part of the reason some people will choose instead to shift into preservation mode. The quickest way to stop feeling like this and to not harm anyone is to tell a “little white lie”. But overtime we realize that there is no such thing. No lie is ever little. The harm done is usually equal, if not greater.

Don’t fall into the trap of thinking that it can be noble to lie. Instead, embrace the other adage. The truth will set you free. To do so requires intent on our part. To lie is a choice. So is telling the truth. If we want integrity to be a portion of our character, then we have to practice it. Honesty is a lot easier than remembering what lie was told to who. Outside of integrity simply being a better way to live, consider the impact on your spirit. When we commit ourselves to being truth speakers, then we are committing to being children of God.

Stay Sunny!

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