Truth in Love

You love them, AND sometimes, you gotta say what needs to be said.

You love you, AND sometimes, you gotta speak the truth to yourself.

If you really love them and you really love you, you can't hide from it anymore.

The truth is there, stuck in your throat as you hold the words back for fear of hurting them, losing them, or facing the reality of your situation.

It's not fine, so don't say it is.

It is a big deal, so don't say it isn't.

Whatever is coming to your mind right now, rest assured that God can help you find a way to speak truth in love.

God gives us discernment, wisdom, and instruction to live a life that aligns with His purpose for our lives.

Too often, we fold up those words of wisdom like an old map (or try to fold it anyway), tuck them away, and choose to follow deceptive directions that tell us where to go.

Suddenly, we stop and look around and realize we are lost. We don't know where we are, how we got here, or how to find our way back.

Have you ever been on a road trip and got lost?

Can you imagine going into a gas station and asking the attendant for directions, and they say,

"What are you doing? Are you stupid? How did you get lost? Shame on you! You should have followed the directions. Looks like I'll have to impart my wayfinding wisdom to help you, you poor lost soul."

Ewe, right? What good would that do?

But isn’t that just what we do when we feel like we gotta say SOMETHING?

When we see a fellow traveler who has lost their way on this journey, as we all have, there is no need to scold or chastise; we've all had enough of that.

Think of what God does when we get lost. He puts out a search party. He never stops looking for us.

When He finds us, He goes on and on about how He missed us and loves us more than we can imagine.

He lifts our heads, tells us the truth, and reminds us that this is not our way. He leads us back. He shows us the way.

Let's walk together in truth and love as we help each other find our way back to the path God designed for us.

Maybe that's all we gotta do.

God loves you, and so do I!

Hebrews 12: 5-6

My dear child, don't shrug off God's discipline, but don't be crushed by it either. It's the child he loves that he disciplines;the child he embraces, he also corrects.

Ephesians 4: 14-15

Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.

1 Corinthians 13:6

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.