What would it take to make you STOP lying?

What would it take to get your attention to realize that lying is destroying your life?  A bad accident, losing a relationship, divorce, or jail - would that finally get your attention?

Before I started truly walking with the Lord, it was not uncommon for me to tell a "little" lie/white lie every once in a while.  I'm sure my reasoning was that I didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings or I was afraid of the confrontation the truth my cause.  Lying was the "quick fix" and hiding behind a lie would keep me from looking bad.

It wasn't until after I had my first child that I found myself REALLY talking to God a lot about my fears of being a new mom.  I was a scared mom who wanted to raise her son the "right way."  I knew that I didn't want my baby to grow up like me (separated from God - even though I attended church regularly).  I constantly prayed and asked God how I could be a good mommy to a child.  Slowly, He  put Godly people in my path who had a personal relationship with Him.  These people over time spoke His message to me - read the word,  pray, and confess/repent from sins.

Soooo, I started praying and reading the bible.  The one scripture that stopped me cold in my tracks was Psalm 66:8 "If I cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened."  Stop!!  Hold everything!  If I (Karla - mom of a precious baby), do not confess my sins and REPENT (stop sinning and make every effort to quit sinning) then God is going to turn a deaf ear to me?  That hit me like a ton of bricks!  I remember thinking that I would not allow the sin in my heart to remain.  If I allowed it to continue, then God would not listen to my prayers for Nicholas.  I wasn't about to forfeit prayers for my child because I couldn't get myself together.

God used Nicholas to get my attention.  The more I read His word, the more convicted I was of the sin in my life.  I knew at the time that I was not a Godly example or a role model for my son, and I desperately wanted that to change.  I didn't want someone else modeling how to live a Godly life to my son when I was perfectly capable of doing it myself with God's help.  I knew I couldn't teach anything out of the bible before I practiced it for myself.

Isaiah 59:2 "But your iniquities have separated you from God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear."

This was another scripture that got my attention.  I didn't want my sins to build a wall between me and the Lord.

Proverbs 12:22 (MSG) "God can't stomach liars; he loves the company of those who keep their word."

Proverbs 2:8 (MSG)  "He keeps his eye on all who live honestly and pays special attention to his loyally committed ones."

Proverbs 6:16-19 (MSG) God hates 6 things - 2 of the 6 deals with lying

Lying separates, destroys, and creates walls - your salvation depends on truth and trusting in God.