After another quiet week here at Kindler of Joy due to camping and exploring creation I am ready to settle at home and say good-bye to summer adventures. What a blessed week it was though, exploring the North Cascades National Park and Ross Recreation Area.
Today is week 24 of Maxim Mondays and we are almost halfway through the awesome tool Fr. Thomas Hopko has given us.
“Be totally honest—first of all, with yourself. The greatest sin is the lie, and the greatest lie is the lie about God, and the lie about me and God. Be totally honest.”
This is a tough one. Not for me to understand in general…”Be totally honest, first of all, with yourself.” But the rest of it is somewhat unclear to me and I wish that Fr. Thomas would have talked a little bit more about it. But that one sentence above is all he said.
I did some searching around on Google about being honest with ourselves. I came across an article on Glory to God for All Things blog by Fr. Stephen Freeman. I think the answer to my questions lie within 1 John 1:5-9…
“This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have communion with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not live according to the truth; but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have communion with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Fr. Stephen writes a great article on the topic. You can find it here: The Problem with Lying.
I believe Fr. Thomas is talking about the lie we tell ourselves when we say we have communion with Him while we walk in darkness. Or the lie we tell ourselves when we say we have no sin.
We need to be fully honest with ourselves. “All sin and fall short of the glory of God.” But we can be redeemed through Christ Jesus!
Be totally honest, first of all with ourselves. May His light shine on you today! May His everlasting JOY, shine upon you today and always.
Kindler of Joy! 