What’s The Truth?

by Susan Lavigne

While rooming with a friend during my college days, we both went to bed around 10 p.m. because of our early morning schedules. This was before cell phones, so we only had one phone hanging on the kitchen wall. One night, my roommate came into my room around 11:30 p.m. I was so sound asleep that I didn’t hear the phone ring. She said, “Susan, the phone is for you.” Now, since I didn’t hear the phone, I proceeded to tell my roommate that she was dreaming and to go back to bed. She was very unhappy with my assessment of the situation and more forcefully said, “Susan, the phone is for you!”

Showing incredible compassion for this poor friend who was obviously having a bad dream, I continued trying to convince her that everything was okay and she just needed to go back to bed. At this point, she totally lost patience with me and said, “SUSAN, YOU GET OUT OF YOUR BED AND PICK UP THE PHONE IN THE KITCHEN!” Shocked by her words, I got out of bed to answer the phone. I was even more shocked to hear a person’s voice on the other end of the telephone.

As with my situation, sometimes our perceptions of what we believe and what is the truth clash. It’s like waking up one morning thinking it’s a workday when it’s actually the weekend. It’s hard to change your belief when you don’t recognize the truth.

A biblical example of this problem with perception happened to the apostle Paul in his early days (when he was known as Saul). He persecuted the new church of Christian believers. You see, he was zealous to do “God’s work” and truly believed he was doing God a favor by ridding the Jews of this new religious cult. Although he was passionate, his perception was not the truth of what God wanted. When his eyes were literally opened to the truth, he found a new mission, this time in support of the church he had previously persecuted. All of us develop different perceptions from our experiences and emotions. We then develop expectations about life from what we were taught or saw modeled. For example, we may have expectations of what our spouse needs, or more often, what we expect from our spouse. However, sometimes conflicts arise when our expectations differ from another. So, where is the truth in our perceptions? As a Christian, when I am struggling with the truth of my perceptions, the best thing I can do is seek out God’s Word on the issue and listen to the Holy Spirit for guidance. Sometimes, guidance comes in the form of wise Christian counsel. Trust me, God wants us to know the truth and will do whatever it takes to help us know it, even if it has to come from a friend shouting at us to pick up the phone.

About The Author Susan Lavigne attends Cornerstone Church. She is a Christian speaker and songwriter. Feel free to contact her at susanclavigne@gmail.com.