To Tell The Truth

To Tell the Truth

You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.

John 8:32

Do you remember the scene from the old I Love Lucy show when Lucy and Ethel decided to get part-time jobs and went to work in a candy factory? At first it was a breeze because the conveyor belt was moving past them very slowly. One at a time they picked up pieces of candy, rolled them in wrappers, twisted the ends, and then placed the wrapped pieces in a box. No problem!

Soon, though, the conveyor belt began moving more quickly. In Lucy’s looniest fashion, she sped up too. “Come on, Ethel, work faster. We can do this!”

So they worked harder and faster and were barely getting the candy wrapped and into the box when . . . the conveyor sped up again.

Now the candy pieces were coming lickety-split! Lucy was grabbing them by the handfuls, throwing them into the box unwrapped, putting them into her pockets, shoving them into her shirt, and stuffing them into her mouth—anything to keep from failing or getting caught by the supervisor.

But, of course, she was fooling herself. Soon the supervisor walked in and found Lucy and Ethel with their mouths and clothes full of candy. Caught—and fired! That’s what a lot of us do when we go on diets, isn’t it? We try to fool ourselves and other people. When we’re with our friends, we eat salads and fruits. When we’re by ourselves, we eat burgers and fries.

I have finally figured out that even though we can fool our friends and family and sometimes even ourselves, we can’t fool our bodies. They will respond to what we really eat, not to what we fool ourselves into believing we eat.

Faking yourself out when you’re dieting is a waist—usually a bigger one!

Dear God, I want my body to glorify you. Please help me to be truthful about myself to myself and to you. Amen.