Speaking truth can sometimes be hard especially when the hearer doesn’t want to hear it.
But truth IS simple - there’s no adding, subtracting or strategizing when we speak it, it’s just simply the truth.
Have you ever seen a piece of tarnished silver? At first glance, it’s not pretty, but once polished, there is a brilliance that is breathtaking!
So it is with untarnished Truth wrapped in love. It’s beautiful because it’s devoid of personal opinion & is rooted in the very personhood of Truth, Jesus Christ!
Today I learned of a Greek word that literally means, “Truthing”.
The word, “alētheúō” is found in Ephesians 4:15 when Paul exhorts us to, “speak the truth in love.”
It’s the act of speaking reality into a person's life, making a record of what God deems is fact, vs. their personal perception.
The tricky part comes with the how 👉🏽 “In love”.
Truthing IN LOVE carries one primary purpose: to equip others to live in God's reality rather than their own personal illusion.
It’s easy to speak truth unkindly when our aim is to convince someone of our own personal convictions.
The delivery is vastly different, however, when we remember that we’re called to be delivery people who simply carry The King’s love-wrapped message of Truth.
Tangibly “Truthing” can be hard, but if we approach the conversation with a question, (Can I ask you a question, Can I share something with you, Have you thought about…) it allows for caring dialogue instead of demanding directives.
Sometimes, we make decisions that seem good, but we can’t see the far-reaching implications of them. I can think of many times that someone loved me enough to speak truth in love, saving me from years of heartache if I’d kept the course!
I can also think of other times I WISHED somebody had spoken truth so that I wouldn’t have suffered the terrible consequences of my poor decisions.
So how about you? Is there someone in your life whom you care for deeply that is about to make a poor choice that could have massive implications in the future?
Ask the Lord if He’s calling you to be a messenger of Truth, & if so, to inform your approach so that it’ll be saturated with His extravagant love & care.
ISAIAH 45:11-48:11
EPHESIANS 4:1-16
PSALM 68:19-35
PROVERBS 24:3-4
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