Am I - are you - willing to stand up for the truth?
About a week ago, I went to watch a movie called Truth & Treason. (I highly recommend by the way) It followed the story of a young German during World War 2. This teenage boy began to realize the lies of the Nazi propaganda and the truth about what was happening to the world and, even, to his friends. He had a gift for writing.
I won’t spoil the story, but there was something so beautiful and captivating about this story. He defended the truth through his writing. He knew what could happen to him if he was found out, but he decided that the truth and his friends were worth it. As I was watching it, it seemed like his writing wouldn’t do much. It seemed simple. But it stirred something within the people who read it.
Words have power. Much more than we think. As I left the theater, I thought to myself Am I willing to stand up for the truth? Even if I could be persecuted? Do I have that conviction? Because to be honest, it’s so easy to hide behind a screen and not speak about the truth for fear of what other people may say.
Looking at the state of the world, it scared me, to be quite honest - to stand up for the truth. I always grew up believing in freedom of speech. But as of late, it’s gotten quite tricky. People have gotten killed for speaking the truth - or even for speaking at all. The massive heartbreaking opinions of those who would rather silence the words of those they feel threatened by bothered me. So much. No one knows what “the truth” is anymore. So many things are distorted by the media and news. I never know what to believe anymore. What should I believe?
I can’t lean on my own understanding. I most definitely know that there are signs. As Philippians 4:8 says - whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is pure, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. These are the kinds of things that point towards truth.
So, if you’re reading this, I invite you to have courage. Courage to stand up for what you believe in. To not shy away from conversations that might prove uncomfortable, but also to be open to change. No one is perfect. We each speak from our own experiences. Sometimes those experiences have mistakenly shaped our worldview. I hope that in all that we do, we may remember that each and every single one of us are worthy of love, life, and happiness.
Praying for you always <3