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Slippery Slopes

A shocking fact was found by a popular psychology group. According to the results of a study done among people who frequent restaurants, 85% of the customers told the restaurant staff their dining experience was good when it wasn’t. The interesting truth revealed was that "customers told white lies to cover up their dissatisfaction."

Why do we tell those harmless lies? Psychology experts consider lying to be cognitive dissonance. It’s a "state of having inconsistent thoughts, beliefs, or attitudes, especially related to behavioral decisions and attitude change." We tend to resort to lying by overcompensating. This means we habitually fabricate the truth to make it adjust to our circumstances or resolve a conflict.

We make the lie fit the occasion for many reasons. The number one reason we lie is because the truth hurts. But wouldn’t a lie hurt more? Experts agree deception and dishonesty lead to a variety of negative results, including broken trust, destroyed relationships, lost jobs, and even criminal convictions. Most people lie to make themselves look better, to avoid hurting other people’s feelings, or to gain social status in some way.

Lying is never ideal, but new research has shown that it can lead to sinister actions. Lies pave the way for more and bigger lies. Lies are "slippery slopes." False beliefs and lies—white, small, or large—are deception and dishonesty. So don’t go there! Your heart is the wellspring of life! You can’t allow lies to come into your life and take root. Lies lead you to a life of deception and moral corruption.

Remember, God wrote the Ten Commandments by hand, and lying was included for a reason. Exodus 32:16 says, "These tablets were God's work, written by God himself." God takes lying seriously, and He wants us to live free of it. Truth and lies can’t coexist, but the good news is, because of God’s unlimited grace, you can have help overcoming this awful habit. God has an endless supply of grace and truth to counteract deception. No matter if you’ve knowingly believed lies or not, now you have a better defense mechanism to use. Lies only serve to harm you in the long run. And when it comes down to it, God’s truth trumps every lie.