“The secrets in their hearts will become known, and in this way, they will quickly bow with their faces touching the ground, worship God, and confess that God is truly among you.” –1 Corinthians 14:25

In a recent study, psychologists discovered that the average person experience guilt for as long as five hours in one week. While we can debate this finding all we want, few people would sincerely claim to be happy with their hidden selves and proud of who they are when no one is watching.

Have you ever felt a deep hurt you cannot share with anyone? Do you feel alone in this crowded world, screaming silently while everyone thinks you’re Ok? Is the silence deafening, the voices rising, and the guilt unending? 

If any of these things reflect your reality, I need you to understand that you are not alone. You see, several people go about carrying burdens they may never share with people because they are afraid. Have you been seeking how to offload the secret burdens in your heart? 

There are things we do when no one sees us because we refuse to realize that nothing can be truly hidden from God. You can only hide your secret sins from men and not from God. “For mine eyes are upon all their ways: they are not hid from my face, neither is their iniquity hid from mine eyes”. – Jeremiah 16:17.

Fortunately, there’s a God who is deeply interested in not just who we appear to be on the outside, but also who we really are on the inside. He is the God of our secret place and the healer of our inner pains. 

Exposing the secret of the heart takes you on a journey to finding freedom from guilt and shame. This is a must-read for those struggling with hidden sin who want to know how to open their hearts to God and live an overcoming life.

Does He Hear the Whispers of Your Heart?

King David said, “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? (Psalm 139:7) 

Naturally, we try to keep secrets. We know the thoughts, intentions, and experiences we would rather keep away from everyone. Away from criticism and unwanted attention, our hearts hold the sweet and sour elixir of our true self in depths only God can reach. Hence the secrets of our hearts are open before our maker. Yet, though He knows, hears, and sees, He still loves us and heals our brokenness. 

Unfortunately, the enemy does not want us to realize how much we need God in the hidden places of our lives. Satan has hijacked the heart of man and driven it in the direction of unending rebellion against God. There’s a battle for the soul of man. Our adversary seeks to enthrone himself at the core of our being so that every evil desire can grow inside us without restraint, destroying people in their most vulnerable places. When evil thrives in our hearts, the enemy rejoices as he watches them flow from inside to become our reality on the outside.

Tracing the Trail of Temptation…

One of the best strategies for finding a remedy is to trace the source of the problem. Temptation can come in different ways. Some people think when they are tempted, they are tempted by God. However, the word of God points in a different direction when it comes to finding temptation. If we believe God is tempting us, why does He ask us to turn to Him for help? Satan wants us to have wrong beliefs about God.

According to James chapter 1:13-15, the bible explains the fact about how a man is being tempted. “Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, nor does he himself tempt anyone. But each one is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.”

Enticed!

The book of James chapter one gives a clear answer in verse 14 “…every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.” In other words, we are drawn from God by our own sinful desires. Although we were once slaves to sin and have been freed from it, we still have a slight inclination toward it. The desire still remains. Therefore, the call to be tempted comes from inside of us. But we have received grace to be able to own up to that desire to sin and subdue it. 

When we dare to face the truth…

The scripture in 2 Corinthians 10:3 reveals that we are engaged in a spiritual war of sin: “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh.” Daily, we battle against our thoughts and opinions, deception, and falsehood, all these being strongholds that can lead us away from the path of God. If this is the reality, how do we fight? To dismantle these strongholds, we need to deploy supernatural weapons (2 Corinthians 10:4). These weapons are listed in Ephesians chapter 6, and it is necessary to be fully geared with the whole armor of God for us to be able to withstand the deception of sin (Ephesians 6:13-18). 

Step into the Light!

An American megachurch founder and leader of one of the most prominent Christian associations once said, “I am a firm believer in living as if there were no such thing as secret. If we hide our sins and live in darkness, we will never get the healing we so desperately need; in fact, if it is hidden so well that we don’t even recognize it, we may never even find forgiveness.” Now that was a powerful statement! Yet, I am going to hide his name because he’s currently clothed in gay sex scandals and drug offenses that have torn the veil of his public piety and exposed the secret reality he couldn’t hide forever. 

Examine yourself. Do you only profess to be Christian while you secret life says otherwise? Beloved, if you step out of the darkeness into the light, your relationship with God will come alive and your broken heart will be mended. 

If you release envy, pride, and immorality, the enemy will be dethroned. Businesses and ministries that has been challenged will come back to life when we repent of their hidden agendas. Faith through grace will empower you to subdue the imaginations and thoughts that seek to ruin everything you’ve built. Your health will be restored. Bitterness will cease in the lives of God’s precious people because we have not allowed the enemy to plant and nurture negative desires in our hearts. 

If this sounds like heaven, I invite you to enter in while there’s a chance because Jesus is going to expose the secrets of our hearts. Is God speaking to you? If yes, would you respond today?