“Why, he’s not wearing anything at all! He’s only wearing his underwear!” The surrounding people gasped. “Who said that?” one asked. “Who said they cannot see the cloth.” “It’s only a child!” exclaimed another. “An honest child!” his father insisted. “Perhaps more honest than any of us.”
During our morning devotion, I asked Eva, “When do we tell the truth?” She enthusiastically shouted, “All the time!” I followed up with, “What about when it hurts someone’s feelings or is unpopular?” She said, “We still tell the truth!” Charlotte just stood there with her chunky little legs clapping her hands together and bouncing.
I felt proud that our teaching had sunk in, and she knew the difference between the truth and a lie.
What I didn’t see coming was the lie I was getting ready to tell.
Swimming in a pool is purely delightful. The sun sparkles across the water, leaving an inviting allure of blue depth.
While playing in the pool, Eva got popsicles for her and her friend. Although I prefer the low-sugar popsicles, there is something about the bundle pack of frozen popsicles. It reminds me of my Aunt Dianne’s old house in the summertime. She kept a big bag of them in the deep freeze (and candy in the bottom of the china cabinet). Grabbing our popsicles out of the freezer, we would cut the top of the plastic off with a pair of scissors and wrap a paper towel around the bottom of our ice-cold treat. Pushing up with our fingers, we would enjoy each crunchy, frozen fruity bite!
In the garage, Eva grabbed the favorite colors for them both. She swung the freezer closed and kept running. She didn’t notice that the door only sealed slightly. It only took a few seconds for the seal to break entirely, and the freezer door stood wide open.
Unbeknownst to me, I kept watching the girls swim and pruning my flowers. After about two hours in the sweltering heat, I gathered my gardening supplies and the girls, and we headed inside to prepare supper. I needed some hamburger meat, so off to the freezer I went. There it was. The freezer was wide open, and half a cow and pig lay unthawing in what is supposed to be ice chambers!
Ice cream and popsicles were more like milkshakes and Kool-Aid dripping down the side of the freezer.
I knew Chuck was not going to be happy about this. There was a lot of money unthawing before my eyes. Although he does like to BBQ, I was pretty sure this was not the kind of full grill he wanted.
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Eva started to cry, realizing on some level what she had done. Nonetheless, it was an accident. We have a standing rule in our home. We do not punish for accidents. I was praying Chuck would remember our rule when he saw the drippings of our investment.
No punishment did not mean there would not be any correction or discussion of the incident. We must teach and instruct our children through their errors so that the same mishap is not repeated.
I wanted to protect Eva from this fault, so I decided I would tell Chuck I left the freezer door open. After all, the lie was for my own martyrdom and would spare Eva the pain of complex consequences even if it was of her own doing. Besides, what was one lie anyways? I would be her hero.
I heard the typically gentle voice within my heart speak abruptly, “What kind of example will you be setting if, when faced with the truth, you cower behind a lie?”
Immediately I asked the Lord to forgive me. I knew what I had to do.
A lie is like poison. Brownies are delicious, but just a drop of poison will ruin a whole batch of brownies. The same is true in our lives. If we make excuses to accommodate a lie, we will destroy our witness to others. God commands us- Thou shalt not lie.
I spoke to Chuck later that afternoon on the phone and explained to him what had happened. He didn’t say much, which always makes me nervous. Eva was hiding when he came home from work. That didn’t seem to phase him much at all. He called Eva to him and walked her to the garage where the freezer was.
In the garage, he demonstrated what happens when the door is left open. Then he explained the importance of closing the freezer. Chuck had Eva practice closing the door several times. When Eva came back inside, she was all smiles and showed me how to close the freezer super tight!
I smiled back at her and gave Chuck a little wink. She had learned a valuable lesson that day.
The damage to the meat turned out to be minimal, and our BBQ was manageable.
“I owe you a debt of gratitude,” the emperor told the young boy. “Your honesty has saved me from making an even bigger fool of myself than I already have. I thank you.” The little boy shrugged, “My parents told me to always tell the truth,” he said. The emperor smiled. “Then they must be very wise indeed.”
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“Truthful lips will be established forever.” Proverbs 12:19
