Daily Devotional
Are You Lying to Yourself?

October 5, 2023

Ponder This

Sometimes we hide sin in our hearts. It may be big, or it may be small, but it is there. We come to church, go to Sunday school, teach the class, sing in the choir, and do other things, but there’s a secret fault.

What happens when a person does that? He or she gets to believing his or her own lie. When you set out to deceive somebody else, do you know who you’re going to deceive most of all? You are going to deceive yourself. Many of you have convinced yourselves that, after you’ve stonewalled God for a while and moved in and out of fellowship, nothing seems to happen. You still sing in the choir, you still teach the Sunday School class, you are still in the congregation, you still shake hands, and you are still friends with all the people. But you say, “Maybe God doesn’t call that sin, and maybe I am a pretty good person.” So, you begin to smooth over your sin.

How does God bring us back? God will not bring us back unless we expose ourselves to the light. If you stay in the darkness, there’ll never be any conviction. But if you, as a child of God, will step back into the light, God will shine the light of His holiness on your life. And God will bring you under conviction.

• When have you deceived yourself about your sin? How might you be doing that now?
• Why is it important to be honest about our sin struggles with ourselves, God, and others?

Practice This

Take some time in prayer and talk to God about the sin you have kept in the dark.