Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire!



"For you are the children of your father the devil, and you love to do the evil things he does. He was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies."

                                                                  - John 8:44
Sometimes it just starts as a thought.  Sometimes it starts out as a fullblown act.  And sometimes it never hapens although we want it to.  It's a lie we tell ourselves, the world tells us, and sometimes other Christians even tell us.  But most importantly, it is a lie of Satan to lead us here we should not go.

GOD WANTS ME TO BE HAPPY

We've all heard stories about people using this excuse when they are trying to convince someone that it is God's will that they ditch their marriage.  Most of us realize that is a lie from Satan.  It's pretty obvious.  But there are many other 'sayings' we (I) use to justify questionable activities....like:

  • It's not that bad
  • I'm stressed
  • It's who I am
  • But it has such a good story line
  • I can't resist
  • I need that because.....
  • It's just part of our culture
  • There's no avoiding it
  • But he really made me mad
And on and on and on.

I am an entertainment junkie.  There I said it.  I love a book, movie, or program with a really good story line.  One with twists and turns, that makes me try to figure it out.  But when the language gets bad or the scenes get too steamy, I start hearing the lines in my head..."It's not that bad".  " But the story is so good". "I can't watch anything without some kind of language." "Just because I watch this doesn't mean I condone it."

Liar, liar pants on fire.  I can almost hear him chuckling.  He wins when I start spouting those excuses.  He's watched me.  He knows my weakness.  And there it is, as tempting for me as a drug is to a junkie.  But then there is this:

"But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”
1 Peter 1:15-16

I am pretty sure some of these entertainment choices would not qualifiy as holy. What about some of the other things we are tempted by?  Eating unhealthy foods?  Foul language that just pops out?  Repeating off color jokes?  Gossiping?  Little, tiny white lies? Looking down on someone else for various reasons? The lies we tell ourselves that these are not bad things come from the one who is 'the father of lies'.

We used to joke as teachers that we could write an objective ( or justification) for any activity we thought of in the classroom.  I'm pretty sure we do that as human beings also.  If I try hard enough, I think  I can probably  figure out an 'acceptable' excuse for many things that would grieve The Father.   

Our definition of happiness is not a promise given us in scripture.  But God HAS  promised us joy. And to me there is a huge difference.

"For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit."

 -Romans 14:7

and

 "He will yet fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy."

 -Job 8:21


 Although there is much disagreement in Christian circles and society in general about the definitions of joy and happiness, many adhere to the belief that joy is found from a much deeper place.   In the September 2015 issue of "Psychologies", the difference is explained this way:    
"Joy and happiness are wonderful feelings to experience, but are very different.  Joy is more consistent and is cultivated internally.  It comes when you make peace with who you are, why you are  and how you are, wherease happiness tends to be externally triggered and is based on other people, things, places, thoughts and events."              

To me, that makes more sense.  If I have just lost a family member, a job, a relationship, or one of a million other difficult things are happening, I can't honestly say I am in a position to be happy.  But knowing Christ and having a relationship with Him allows me to confide my sorrow and unhappiness in Him.  When I do that, He returns with a deep seated sense of joy for me, because knowing Him is the source of joy.

 Is His main concern my happiness?  No.  His main concern is my development into a mirror of His Son.  And many of the quesionable activities listed earlier have no part in that development.

 Soi the next time you are tempted by a questionable activity, and the "God wants me to be happy' thought pops into your head, remember this:


HE'S A LIAR!

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