Can You Be Honest?

 

Have you ever had someone say, "Can I be honest with you?" No matter how you felt about it, I'll bet you said, "Yes."

I prefer that people be honest with me. I have a hard time with those who talk indirectly about an issue, expecting me to guess what they mean. My response may seem totally irrelevant. 

When I was fighting cancer, I became deeply aware of the Psalms. Before then I had read them, but never really studied them. In fact, I started with a simple Bible study booklet called *Praying the Psalms.

Today I focused on Psalm 139. There David praises God for His ability to be everywhere at once plus His ability to know all things. These characteristics are listed in the dictionary under omnipresent and omniscient.

In the first six verses, David says God knows everything about him. Then in verse seven, he asks, “Where can I flee from Your Presence?” He shares illustrations of a God that is everywhere; there’s no place to hide.

In verses thirteen through sixteen, David declares the beauty of creation in utero. I found it easy to agree when he said, “I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made.” Our life systems are awesome---Skeletal, Muscular, Respiratory, Digestive, and Reproductive, to name a few.

The last four verses are interesting contrasts. First, David declares his love for God, including hatred for those who malign God and speak evil of him.

Then he follows up with a prayer: Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting (Psalm 139:23-24 NIV).

Can you be that honest? Can I? If you read David’s life story, he wasn’t perfect. Neither are we, but with God, and people, honesty is the best policy.

 *Bible study booklets by InterVarsity Press are available in the Life Guide Bible Studies Series from ChristianBooks.com or Amazon.