By Lisa Wilmore
Dear Hearts,
One of my pet peeves is that people are honest with me. It bothers me when they feel the need to fabricate to protect themselves in a situation.
Here is an interesting story.
God has given me the opportunity to work with some students in an Algebra class. Sometimes the students like to deviate from the lesson and meander on other websites that they are not supposed to enter. One particular student consistently entered a site that was not appropriate for math class. I was able through the program’s portal to close out the information on the site. He and I went back and forth. He would open it and from my computer, I would close it. It was definitely a computer war. Of course, He figured it out and knew that I was closing his website each time he opened it. The student finally came to me and inquired about the closure of his website. I tried to explain to him that it was the system and as he clicked on it, the site would close automatically. I did not want him to know that I knew how to run the system of closing what they were viewing online. Yes, you figured it out. I was dishonest.
My heart was so convicted. I was guilty of my own “pet peeve”. I immediately confessed to God and apologized to Him. Afterwards, I met with the student as he walked down the hall to another class. I asked him for his forgiveness because I had not been truthful to him. I explained to him my purpose, but clearly acknowledged that I was responsible for closing the website. He talked to me and shared his reasoning for being off task. He then said, “All you had to do was to let me know”. That statement brought me to reality. Of course, I apologized again. He understood, accepted my apology, and was equally apologetic for his actions.
Sometimes we are guilty of our own “pet peeves”. Things that bother us may be things that we are guilty of. How do you deal with situations where you might have shared a falsehood to avoid being exposed? After all, falsehoods are essentially lies..
The Bible emphasizes that “Lying and liars are hated by God and will be punished.” Proverbs 6:16 indicates, “There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to Him.” Two of those items are a lying tongue and a false witness who breathes out lies (Prov. 12:22). Thank God for His forgiveness through Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit for correction.
So, what I have learned from this lesson, “Honesty truly is the best policy”. After talking to my young student, there was a weight lifted from my heart because God gave me an opportunity to apply His “policy”-the truth.
