The Truth sets you Free

Whilst working as a teacher, a grade three student started chatting with me one day about the early years when he had started coming to the school. The sweet little boy recalled some good memories, and then said,  "I miss Mercede.  My sister and I found it so funny that Mercede drove a Mercedes!" At first I was puzzled... but then I realized who he was talking about, and I burst out in laughter! There was a teacher that worked here some time back, by the name of Miss. Sadi! I realized that, because of the pronunciation they heard, that they thought Miss. Sadi's surname was "Mercede"! To top it all, this name had stuck and no one ever noticed or corrected it. 

I began to think how easy a misunderstanding can happen, leading to someone actually believing an untruth. Especially children. A child can understand something in the wrong way and believe this as truth, for the rest of his or her life. In this case, it was not a serious matter. However, accepting an untruth as truth can potentially lead to all kinds of negative beliefs and behaviour patterns. For example, a teenage girl being bombarded by media that promoting a skinny look, may begin to believe that she is fat. As a result of this untruth, she can develop serious eating disorders which can lead to self harm.  

Society dictates, and people are under constant pressure, especially through social media, to be 'liked' or 'followed'. Uncertainty of whether one is accepted or liked, can lead to thoughts of self-doubt, low self-esteem and confusion about one's identity. So often, young people fall prey to wrong relationships to feel loved and accepted. Many people resort to drugs to cope with perceived untruths and negative feelings.  I mentioned "perceived untruths", because most people believe certain lies about themselves, such as: I am ugly/not good enough/rejected/lonely/condemned, the list goes on ...

We have an enemy, the devil, who wants to destroy us and will use whatever methods he can to make us believe lies. After all, he is the father of lies. (John 8:44) Therefore, it is essential that we ask God to examine our thoughts, and see whether what we believe is from Him or not. (Ps 139:23,24)

So how and where do we get the truth? In God's Word only. His Word should be our ultimate authority. It is forever settled in Heaven. (Ps 119:89). We can trust it, stand on it, and make it our own. In John 14:6, Jesus makes it clear that He is the way, the truth and the life. When we know Jesus and find our acceptance, purpose and security in Him, we can always walk in truth. There are so many truths about our identity and purpose in God's Word. When we get to know these truths, we never ever need to experience insecurity or doubt about whether we are accepted, or good enough. Knowing God's truths will help us to identify lies and to reject them. Therefore, we need to be careful what we believe and take every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ. (2 Cor 10:5) God teaches us in His Word who He is, and who we are in Him - saved, forgiven, set free, new creations in Christ!  God's truths set us free indeed!