You shall not give false testimony…

Dear Lord; Happy Monday Father.  As always, I’d like to start today by thanking You for the Blessings You bestowed on me this past weekend.  While we had some disappointments in regards to plans that had been made, I did get to spend quite a bit of relaxed time with my family and some friends.  All in all, it was a quiet but happy couple of days and I thank You for that.

This morning Lord, I’d like to talk about honesty if I may.  It’s been a topic on my mind the last couple of days, as our disruption in plans this past weekend appears to have been the result of some deceit from someone Shannon and I had trusted.  We haven’t been able to confirm our suspicions yet, but it’s extremely likely that we’re correct in this case.  Either way, the situation got me thinking about the importance of truth in our lives in general, and how as Your Children we need to focus on it in our lives.

To begin with, I have to beg Your Forgiveness Lord.  When I started going over the whole subject in my head, I put myself and my actions in a “litmus test” against Your Law and I found myself lacking.  While I like to think of myself as an honest individual, if I truly subject myself to Your Absolutes I lie nearly every day in some fashion.  Whether it’s a “little white lie” to avoid hurting someone’s feelings, or telling my secretary that I’m out if someone I don’t want to hear from calls, they’re lies no matter how you slice it.  And when I expand that examination outward, it appears that we’re a dishonest society in general Lord.

Wow… What an intense realization for a Monday morning.

“You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.”  – Exodus 20:16

Ah yes, the good old 9^th Commandment.  Although we all know this one, we also all violate it at some point as well.  There are many other edicts about misrepresenting the truth in Your Book as well Lord, including :

“Do not steal.  Do not lie.  Do not deceive one another.”  – Leviticus 19:11

“The LORD detests lying lips, but he delights in people who are trustworthy.” – Proverbs 12:22

“Those who walk righteously
and speak what is right,
who reject gain from extortion
and keep their hands from accepting bribes,
who stop their ears against plots of murder
and shut their eyes against contemplating evil—
they are the ones who will dwell on the heights,
whose refuge will be the mountain fortress.
Their bread will be supplied,
and water will not fail them.”  – Isaiah 33:15-16

Forgive us Lord, for in this respect we have lost our way.

Heavenly Father, please forgive us for our misdeeds.  Purge our fragile hearts of dishonesty, and help us focus on Your Guidance and Light as we go about each day, so that we may serve Your Will with honesty and Integrity.  Amen.

~Phather Phil