Reflections on Truthنموونە

Whispers of lies harassed my mind even in this idyllic seaside retreat. Lies that spoke condemnation; words of not good enough; whispers of worthless. Like stowaways, they’d tucked themselves in with my luggage and were poisoning the atmosphere of what could have been a ‘perfect’ holiday.

Trying to keep things upbeat, I hopped into a kayak with my husband, and we paddled out to where the sea and the sky met in the middle. It was hard to tell the difference between them as they merged into a seamless, watery-blue backdrop. Splashing our way out and around a peninsula of rocks, we startled a large flock of seagulls basking in the sun. The whole gathering flapped into flight, showing their annoyance at being disturbed with angry squawks. All except one seagull. Clearly distressed, this bird stood gagging. With a sinker-sized lump lodged in its throat and a piece of nylon dangling from its beak, it was obvious that this poor bird had swallowed a fisherman’s baited hook and sinker. Poor thing!

I sat mulling over my carry-on baggage of lies and saw similarities between myself and this poor creature. Isn’t that just where the enemy would like to keep us? I pondered; gagging, with life being choked out of us. Jesus Himself, warns us that the enemy of our souls baits us with his lies; “the devil… not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. ”Sometimes lies are so subtle though, aren’t they? How then, can we distinguish between what is dangerous ‘bait’ and what is truth?

The Bible is God’s truth. His thoughts, promises, and answers on paper. So, any queries about the origins of anything that we hear can be lined up to this plumb line to test their accuracy. Some of us have lived with sin’s deceit for so long, that we come to believe that choking and gagging on them is normal. But the good news of the Gospel is that there is release and freedom when we direct our attention away from lies and towards the truths in God’s Word.

My husband humanely helped the seagull while I threw my ‘baggage’ overboard in prayer. Our buoyant adventure continued and for the first time in forever, I felt as light as a feather!

Prayer:

Dear Father, please give us wisdom and discernment as You teach us from Your Word, to see lies clearly for what they are; deadly bait. Instead of chasing them, help us to chase after your Truth which sets us free. Amen.