WEDNESDAY'S WORD - PRETENDING - Sadell Bradley - 5/26/2021

WEDNESDAY'S WORD PRETENDING 5/26/2021 "One way of paying tribute to my parents was 'bearing witness' as the Quakers do—writing down everything that was happening instead of turning my back on it and pretending that it was all great." - Roz Chest American Cartoonist Yesterday, I reposted a quote on social media that seemed to strike a nerve. It said, "You couldn't heal, because you kept pretending you weren't hurt." To my surprise, it was shared by 244 people. I guess a lot of my Facebook friends have become accustomed to, or are great at PRETENDING— speaking or acting so as to make it appear that something is the case when in fact, it is not. Or engaging in a game or fantasy that involves supposing something that is not the case to be so, or giving the appearance of feeling or possessing (an emotion or quality). To pretend means something or someone is not really what is represented; it's a game or a deception. In this instance, many came to the realization that they were in truth wounded, broken, or injured—while portraying to the world that they were ok. I believe we often greet one another in insincere and disingenuous ways. We ask, "How are you?" and we quickly and matter-of-factly answer, "Fine, how are you?" When sometimes we really want to say... "I'm devastated, discouraged, disappointed, and ready to give up. Will you please help me?!" I attended a Quaker School from 1st through 12th grades. They have a principle called The Testimony of Integrity or The Testimony of Truth—that one should 'bear witness' by being truthful in one's dealings with God, self, and others. It includes frankness of speech, personal wholeness, honesty, fairness, and just dealings. Quakers believe that Christ-followers are not only to tell the truth but live it out and apply it to all situations. Some take this practice so seriously that they refuse to become actors or actresses because it involves pretending to be someone else—which they believe is not integrity but deception. I'm not going that far, but Paul exhorts us in Colossians 3:9-10, "Don't lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds. Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like Him." In Ephesians 4:15 he declares that "speaking the truth in love" is a sign of maturity. We have grown to be more like Christ. The first person we must speak truth to is ourselves. It can feel easier and more familiar to pretend...but it's more godly and righteous for us to be truthful about who, what, and where we really are. WEDNESDAY BIBLE STUDY HALL OF FAITH ABRAHAM & ISAAC TONIGHT, 7:00 pm EST @warehouseOTR live.thewarehousechurch.org