Living REAL in the Real World After All…
By Elin Henderson
“And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we
may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.”
1 John 5:20 (NKJV)
Reality shows are the biggest thing to hit TV these past decades. Every time I touch down on American soil, I am amazed at the nuances I find. Reality shows about surviving, finding love, getting lost, racing, eating weird foods…you name it, they’ve made a show about it! The buzz has even made it all the way here to Mozambique. This last year, scouts for “Survivor” searched for a location for their next shoot. Apparently, they found some great places, but the cities here don’t seem to be adequate for their crews! Oh well, don’t expect to see “Survivor: Mozambique” on your TV screens just yet.By Elin Henderson
“And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we
may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.”
1 John 5:20 (NKJV)
Truth is a core essential to Christian living and believers need to be constantly seeking after it. How easily we are duped into believing a lie…and not usually because it is so far from the truth, but more often because it is so close to the truth. Satan is called the Father of Lies and wants to keep us from walking in truth. How do we keep ourselves from being sucked into the near truths or lies that the world and the enemy are constantly throwing our way? Well, we have several top-of-the-line sources for “reality.” The Word of God is our source of truth. Not only that, but we have God Himself, the Author of truth, alive and well within us in the form of the Holy Spirit. He promises to guide us into all truth. And finally, we have the example of Christ who lived His whole life in step with grace and truth.
Part of claiming the truths revealed by the Holy Spirit through His Word and lived out by His Son, is also being honest with ourselves. Too many of us live with varying degrees of self-deception. We aren’t always honest with where we are at and what is going on in our lives. Maybe on the outside things seem “rosy” to those around us, but inside we are living far from the reality of that. David says in Psalm 51:6 that God desires truth in the inner parts of our souls. Truth inside and out sets us free to be all that God wants us to be.
May our lives be “reality shows” for the world to look on and see truth and all that comes with it!
GOING DEEPER:
1. What safeguards do you have in place to keep yourself focused on truth?
FURTHER READING:
John 1:14, 8:32, 16:13, 17:17
Oakwood’s missionaries Elin Henderson and her husband Phil serve as church planters with New Tribes in Mozambique, Africa. Elin is mother to nine-year-old Callie and six-year-old Elias.
