Nobody Believes a Liar

The Boy Who Cried Wolf

There once was a shepherd boy who was bored as he sat on the hillside watching the village sheep. To amuse himself he took a great breath and sang out, “Wolf! Wolf! The Wolf is chasing the sheep!”

The villagers came running up the hill to help the boy drive the wolf away. But when they arrived at the top of the hill, they found no wolf. The boy laughed at the sight of their angry faces.

“Don’t cry ‘wolf’, shepherd boy,” said the villagers, “when there’s no wolf!” They went grumbling back down the hill.

Later, the boy sang out again, “Wolf! Wolf! The wolf is chasing the sheep!” To his naughty delight, he watched the villagers run up the hill to help him drive the wolf away.

When the villagers saw no wolf they sternly said, “Save your frightened song for when there is really something wrong! Don’t cry ‘wolf’ when there is NO wolf!”

But the boy just grinned and watched them go grumbling down the hill once more.

Later, he saw a REAL wolf prowling about his flock. Alarmed, he leaped to his feet and sang out as loudly as he could, “Wolf! Wolf!”

But the villagers thought he was trying to fool them again, and so they didn’t come.

At sunset, everyone wondered why the shepherd boy hadn’t returned to the village with their sheep. They went up the hill to find the boy. They found him weeping.

“There really was a wolf here! The flock has scattered! I cried out, “Wolf!” Why didn’t you come?”

An old man tried to comfort the boy as they walked back to the village.

“We’ll help you look for the lost sheep in the morning,” he said, putting his arm around the youth, “Nobody believes a liar…even when he is telling the truth!”

Proverbs 6:16-19

New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

¹⁶ There are six things that the Lord hates,
seven that are an abomination to him:
¹⁷ haughty eyes, a lying tongue,
and hands that shed innocent blood,
¹⁸ a heart that devises wicked plans,
feet that hurry to run to evil,
¹⁹ a lying witness who testifies falsely,
and one who sows discord in a family.

Love Series: Healed to Love

This morning I was thinking about the importance of being emotionally healthy to give and receive love. We are all products of our upbringing and most of us carry those experiences into adulthood. Let me start by talking about myself.

My Dad was a cold person. Not affectionate at all. My mother was not cold, but she was not what you would call overly affectionate. But she was very loving. Even has an adult I could sit next to her and lay my head on her if I wanted to. So I would say, I was raised in a non affectionate household even though we loved each other. I think I am somewhere in the middle. When I see my brothers, I will hug them and if I’m near my nieces or nephews I have to give lots of hugs or kisses. So I think I ended up like my mom. Loving, but not overly affectionate.

My relationship with my Dad affected me greatly, especially where it comes to relating to men. I have watched women just sow love on men first and I just can’t do that. I think that is out-of-order. If you notice the story of Hosea is about a man loving a WOMAN through her sin, not vice versa. There is a reason God made it like that. Men are not inclined to stay with a woman after she has cheated, but women do it all the time. There is nothing unusual about a woman staying with a man after he cheated. That is why the story of Hosea is so powerful.

I have been told that I am cold, but it’s usually by men, who have played with my emotions. I can tell you some stories. I’m not as inclined to believe a man when it’s just words and not actions. I have to be careful with my heart and I don’t like being lied to.

I can tell you this. If a man is waiting on me to woo him, we will never be together. lol That is not me, or the order of God. I believe when the right man comes along he will have to do the wooing. Pleading with a man to love and be with me would never work for me. But the man who is willing to do the work will have a LOYAL partner. Not a yes-I’ve-been-faithful-but-I’m-really-not partner.

I know I was supposed to be talking about healing and I am. Most people need to be healed to be able to love effectively. If you are too needy, you don’t know how to love and no one will be able to satisfy you. The first step in the quest for love is asking God to heal you of the things that are not emotionally healthy. Don’t assume how you are in how it’s supposed to be. Your idea of love may very well be distorted. And remember, the truth is NO ONE can give us the unconditional love that God can give us. Everyone has conditions and God made it that way, so that we would put NO ONE before him.

Luke 10:27

New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

²⁷ He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.”

Pop Culture: In Love With a Celebrity?

Yesterday, I went to see the movie Oblivion with Tom Cruise and Morgan Freeman, and as I sat in the theater watching an aging Tom Cruise, I couldn’t help but wonder what happened in his marriage to Katie Holmes. Of course we will probably never know the full story.

But what we do know that is documented in the press, is that Katie Holmes said she used to dream about marrying Tom Cruise, when she was younger, so you can imagine what it was like when this dream starting coming true.

I was reading some old articles from when they first got together and you could tell she was infatuated because she painted a picture of perfection. It was a fantasy realized. She got to finally get up close to the man who she had dreamed about marrying for years. This was the “perfect” love story. So of course when this starts happening, naturally she has to be in love right?

Most people will not have that experience. Not many people get close enough to marry their fantasy man, and even Katie Holmes didn’t marry her fantasy man. Fast forward many years later and we all saw it play out in the press. Katie Holmes made a great escape, seemingly running for her life.

I wish I could talk to Katie Holmes and hear what she has to say now about this celebrity that she wanted for years. I would love to know was it really love, or was she just infatuated with a handsome, rich and famous man. I bet she would say it was infatuation.

I’m sure Tom was greatly affected by her leaving, especially the way she left. It’s said he was blind-sided. After all this is the woman that he jumped on Oprah’s couch over! lol But Tom will do like most celebrity men in his age bracket. He’ll marry another beautiful woman half his age and life will go on.

There is a difference between infatuation and true love. I feel for men in the public eye. Many are fooled into thinking that these woman who say they love them really do. But often it’s about money and status, especially if the woman is poor.

I also believe a woman can really talk herself into believing she is in love with a man who is a celebrity. It happens all the time. After all spending hours analyzing his artistry on screen and studying his every move can get to a woman, especially one who is prone to fantasy instead of reality. Watching a man on a movie screen has a powerful effect. And then if she get’s a chance! Wow, that would be mind blowing and would send even the most stable woman into la-la land. lol

Yes, so many woman are “in love” with celebrities, but the reality of who the man is, is a whole different thing. I bet if you asked Katie, she would tell you she was infatuated. But we will never know.

http://www.wmagazine.com/celebrities/archive/katie_holmes?currentPage=1