Try telling the truth

"Did you hit your sister?" your mom asks, looking down at you with a face like thunder.

You wait a long time before you slowly answer, "Noooo...." You and your mother both know you're lying.

Whether it's big stuff or little stuff that we do wrong, God knows about it. In this week's Gospel (Matthew 5:17-37), Jesus tells us to always be honest -- with ourselves, each other and God.

"Follow God's laws," Jesus taught. "The commandments tell you not to kill or lie, but even if you're just mean to another person, God will remember it when it's time for you to go to heaven. Don't even say, `I swear to God' -- just say `yes' or `no.'"

Some of the people Jesus was teaching felt the same way. They figured that as long as they were following the Ten Commandments -- not doing big stuff like lying or stealing -- then God didn't care what else they did.

Even if your mom believes your lie that you didn't hit your sister, you only feel good about it for a little while. Then you see that your sister doesn't want to play with you, and you feel sad that you hit her and guilty for lying about it.

That's what Jesus wanted us to remember -- that getting away with something doesn't mean it's okay that you did it. Even if it's just a small thing, Jesus said He'd remember if you didn't say you were sorry and try to fix your mistake. Jesus didn't even want us to swear or be mean!

Next time you make a mistake, try telling the truth about it. Even if it feels bad to be punished, you'll feel better later. If you lie about it, you'll feel guilty for a long time -- especially when you meet Jesus someday, and He reminds you about it!

PRAYER FOR THE WEEK: Jesus, help me to always tell the truth, so you'll remember that when I'm in heaven someday! Amen.

(02-11-99)