Secrets

Click here to see a humorous excerpt from the classic TV show I’ve Got a Secret. Guests on the show would come on stage and whisper their secret into Garry’s ear. (The secret was then revealed to the audience.) The panelists would ask questions to try to uncover the secret. It was always great fun when the secret was revealed to the panel—whether it was shocking or unusual or simply unexpected. Good energy is released when a secret becomes known.

In Frank Delaney’s epic novel about Ireland, the narrator tells us that every person has three dimensions to his/her life:

1. The public life,
2. The private life, and
3. The secret life.

The story Delaney weaves aptly demonstrates that the untold secrets we hold inside ourselves play out in our actions in unpredictable ways. We are the only ones we are really hiding our secrets from. Everyone else already “knows.” Or at the very least, they “know” that we are hiding something.

In Delaney’s story, a family goes to great lengths to hide the secret about the true parentage of a young boy. The child is aware that he is not being told the whole truth. This child is not able to come into his full manhood until he discovers the truth about himself.

The Truth Sets Us Free
We often go to great lengths to hide our secrets, because we fear what might happen if someone knew.

How liberating it can be to simply set our truth free, trusting that the outcome will be one of grace rather than judgment.

Reflection Questions
What are you hiding?

• A gift you are too shy to share with the world?
• A vocational calling that seems impossible?
• A story from your past?

What is one small step you can take to bring your secret out of hiding? Think of one person you can tell.