“All you need to say is ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ . . .”
– Matthew 5:37
Have you ever been in a conversation that began with, “To be honest with you…”? Or, “To tell you the truth…” What was your reaction? Bet your guard went up like fireworks on the 4th of July! So what is honesty? It’s not just telling the truth. It’s about being REAL with yourself and others. Saying “yes” or “no” goes much beyond those simple words.
God likes honest people. What does that mean? Is it saying God doesn’t like you if you are dishonest? No! God loves us no matter what. A more in depth meaning is, God wants us to be open and honest with Him in our prayer life, in our communication with Him, and with our fellow man.
For example, there are times when I talk honestly with God:
“Lord, I’m just not sure how to pray for such and such.”
“Lord, when I read your Word, I don’t understand what it is saying.”
“Lord, I have a disagreement with my brother and I’d just like to knock his head clean off!”
“Lord, there are times when I am just don’t feel like worshipping you.”
What are we saying when we are honest with God? We are admitting that we are human and being as open as we can be. When we act this way, we are building our relationship with our Father. It’s called TRUST!
Just imagine what our relationship would be like with our fellow man if we practiced open, honest communication. We could have a much better path to being able to “Love Your Neighbor”.
-Terry Miller has over 30 years of banking and training experience with major banking institutions.12+ years as owner/principal of Terry Miller & Associates – a training and development firm. He spent 8 years as director of Pastoral Care with Waxahachie Bible Church. Terry is currently semi-retired. Continuing with self-employment directing Terry Miller & Associates, a consulting firm conducting speaking and training engagements, in addition to authoring and publishing 4 books.
