A church deacon somewhere was trying to impress upon a class of young boys the importance of living a Christian life. I don’t know if this is a true story or not, but the deacon allegedly asked the Sunday school class, “Why do you think people call me a Christian?”
After a few quiet moments, one youngster piped up, “Maybe it’s because they don’t know you.”
Ouch!
Whether this is a true story or not, we’ve all experienced hypocrisy in our very own lives. Mark Twain is credited to have said, “We’re all like the moon; we have a dark side we don’t want anyone to see.”
Hypocrisy is a dangerous thing. It has turned many men and women away from the Lord to search elsewhere for answers. It can ruin an entire generation and more after them. But we have the opportunity to change those generations for the good of God’s kingdom! Those of us who want to know and love God must never stop allowing Him to search our “dark sides” so that we can more effectively be used as vessels to lead the hungry multitudes to Him.
I received Pink Floyd’s LP, The Dark Side of the Moon, back when I was a kid. I loved the guitar and the smooth, minor-key melodies, but I was older when I discovered that “the dark side of the moon” was a euphemism for “death.” Oddly enough, that is precisely where our dark sides propel us.
We’re always wrestling with some behavior or desire we don’t want others to know about. Left to itself, that dark side desire will grow and fester into habits and addictions that oppress us, imprison us, and prevent us from being free. We have many self-help books available that might point us in the right direction, but here is a habit I want you to put into practice this week.
I want you to pray through two verses each morning for seven days. Don’t pray them in front of others, and don’t tell anyone you’re doing it. (See Matthew 6:6.) Here is the passage:
This is an appeal to the Lord to reveal where you fall short. You may already know some things rolling around in your trunk but pray these verses anyway.
This psalm is written as a prayer, so go somewhere alone and read these verses aloud several times as a prayer to God. In only a minute or two, you will have memorized them. Pray these verses to God each morning this week. Repeat them over and over.
I have found that God responds to this kind of prayer: a humble appeal for the Lord to reveal, move, and begin transforming us. That transformation is the key to freedom from the sinful desires, issues, and burdens lurking in our dark sides.
E-mail me and describe your experience after completing this week-long prayer exercise:
jim@catalyzerbook.com
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