A treasured friend of mine would tell me a story from her days as a child. After her father would come home from work, her mother would tell him of the children’s behavior that day. He’d call them into his presence and, holding them gently by the wrist, he would calmly say, “I am going to ask you a few questions. But I want you to know – I already know the answer.” Unbeknownst to them, their father was checking their pulse to affirm the veracity of their confession, whether it be truthful or not.God knows the hearts of men. He knows our frame. He made them, after all. Being honest and transparent with others seems to be a skill sorely forsaken at the fall of man in the garden. Vulnerability is looked down on as weakness in our society, so we mask ourselves behind a veil of vanity; flawed perfection and when we do have burdens and sinfulness that needs to be confessed, we allow pride to re-cover and save face rather than let humility take precedence. Think of the needless pain and turmoil we bear when we do not confess these things to our God, in prayer. (Psalm 32:3-4)Confession to God, and others, is not an option – it is commanded. (James 5:16) We need to learn to be transparent with each other when we are struggling against sin. We need to learn to be transparent with one another when we are burdened with many cares and are heavy laden. But so much more, and before confession to others, we need to learn to take our burdens to the cross, and be honest with God.Why do we believe the lie that we can hide anything from God, especially our thoughts? Our thought life does not escape the omniscience of God. There is a great deal of foolishness and arrogance in the presumption that we can hide anything from the One who knows our frame intimately. (Psalm 139:13-16)In Christ Jesus, the One Who purchased us for His glory by His precious blood, He calls us into the presence of God, where we can come boldly, on our knees before Him in prayer. (Hebrews 4:16) There, we receive grace for our transgressions, mercy for our mistakes, and forgiveness for our folly. He promises to forgive, and He is faithful to do it. (1 John 1:9)
Sisters, this is a undeserved mercy, that we can be honest and open with the living God about what is on our hearts and minds. It is a privilege given, not earned. Come before the throne of grace and speak to Him. He already knows what we are going to say. There is no need to hide, once we are hidden in Christ.
