Think a minute…Honesty is the best shortcut to living life at its best. It goes straight to the truth of every matter, so it saves all of our most valuable possessions in life.  

Honesty saves your conscience and character. “Honesty is telling others the truth. Integrity is telling myself the truth.” Many people are honest only because they fear getting caught cheating or lying and being punished.

But a person of integrity is always honest no matter what he can get away with, even if no one knows—because he knows what dishonest things he did, and that God Himself sees absolutely everything he thinks and does.  

The truth does not change or go away just because we do. In fact, “If you keep hiding from the truth, eventually the truth comes to your front door.” So our family and those close to us are all victims of our lies. Your lies always affect others, not just you alone.

Lying may be the quick and easy way out for the moment, but your pain and terrible consequences of your lies remain for a long time after! For one thing, it steals your peace of mind. You can never escape your guilt and fear of being caught. A French proverb says it well: “The softest pillow is a clear conscience.” Another saying puts it this way: “Even worse than telling a lie is spending the rest of your life trying to live it.” 

If you tell the truth, you don’t have to hide or remember anything. As a wise man observed: “No one has a good enough memory to become a successful liar.”  That is why a Russian Proverb warns us: “With lies you may get ahead, but you cannot go back.” 

Remember, “Lies have speed, but truth has endurance.” Truth lasts a lifetime and always wins in the end. So we are smart to start building our life on truth as soon as possible, rather than wait until it’s too late and we lose nearly everything. 

The number one shortcut in life is knowing and confessing the truth about two things. Number one, we all have lived life wrongly. And number two, only God Himself can forgive us and change us. Jesus said: “Everyone on the side of truth follows Me.”

Following the Truth Himself is the only shortcut to real life—both now and where we live after this life. Why waste and risk one more day? Won’t you start truly following Him and His true way today? Just think a minute…