Take Off the Concealer

Adam and Eve tried to hide from God when they sinned. Ananias and Sapphira tried to hide some of the money they had made from a business deal from God. Jonah tried to run away to Tarshish to hide from God. It’s easy to smile and laugh when we read about Jonah being swallowed by a whale, Adam and Eve’s futile attempt to hide from an omnipresent God who is present in every place, but if we look deeper and closer, we can actually see ourselves in some of these Bible characters.

Let’s do a quick check up:

Are you hiding your real and true self from God? Do you hide your failings, weaknesses, pains, fears and inner struggles from God?

Are you using ‘busyness’ to hide from God; to avoid going on a divine errand God has sent you on or assignment He has given you to do?

Are you hiding your money from God? Is the attitude you give God when it comes to your money, look but don’t touch, don’t talk!

Are there things in your past you have swept under the carpet and don’t want to discuss with God?

Are you good at keeping secrets from God?

People hide their moments of weakness, problems and inner struggles from others because they feel if they open up about who they are and what they have done, they stand the chance of being rejected, misjudged, misused or even punished. Or they can become an object of ridicule and mindless gossip. So to play it safe, a lot is concealed as we go through life, as we relate with people.

Women who use make up, understand the benefit of a concealer. It can cover pimples, spots, dark circles under the eyes, blemishes and skin discoloration. While a concealer may be a good cosmetic product, ‘concealers’ are not needed when we come to God or are before God. God wants us to come to Him as ‘natural’ as possible; not concealing or hiding anything from Him. Proverbs 28:13 says “Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.”

It makes no sense whatsoever to conceal aspects of our life from a God who can see right through us, a God that everything about us is uncovered and laid bare before His eyes (Hebrews 4:13). We don’t need to conceal any spot, blemish, stain or mark when we are before God. God has the capacity to hear about our sins, pains, fears and inner struggles and not be repelled by our imperfections.

The thing about concealers is that they are not lasting and permanent. I’m sure if you use a concealer for your face, you can relate. Too much hydration for instance can make your concealer disappear quickly. Liquid concealers also fade easily. For a woman with oily skin, the excess oil can reduce how long a concealer lasts on her face. Even if you apply all the best make up techniques out there to help your concealer last through the day, any good dermatologist, cosmetologist or makeup artist will tell you that sleeping with makeup is not good for the skin, that it is important to wash off all makeup before going to bed for a healthy and better skin. At some point, you have to take off your concealer.

Whether it’s a makeup concealer used to hide spots and blemishes on the face or our own human attempt to conceal certain aspects of our lives from God, none of them can hide things forever. Luke 12:2-3 tells us that there is nothing covered, hidden, concealed and kept secret that will not be brought out into the open eventually. That’s why it’s safer, better and wiser to give God all your secrets, all your dark and weak sides, so He addresses them, helps you with them, and deals with them in a way that is best for you. This works better than having your concealed sins and weaknesses someday exposed in places and to people you have tried so hard to mask your past, flaws and failings from.

On a daily basis, God offers rest from pains and troubles, a strong right hand to steady those who are feeble, failing and falling, and mercy and forgiveness from sin, even the most grievous of sins. But how can we receive this if we are so busy hiding, concealing and covering up things whenever we are with God? Stop playing hide and seek. Hide and seek doesn’t work with God. There’s no place you can hide from God, there’s nothing you can conceal from God. Let God into the dark and deep areas of your life. Take off the ‘concealer’, pour out your heart, bare your soul to God.

PHOTO CREDIT: Pixabay