Donuts For Sunday School

I was 17 years old and saving to put myself through college. I found a job at a popular donut shop which was on the borderline of the rough side of town.

It required I start at 5:30am to fill the different jelly donuts. My training was 30 minutes. There were supply boxes of different jellies: grape, raspberry, strawberry, blueberry, and lemon. My job was to make a tray of each for the morning rush. One Sunday morning, I came to the shop and discovered only grape jelly. I went to the supervisor and informed her and she said, “Just fill them all with the grape and put them in the different jelly trays.”

The Deception: I started to object when she eyed me sternly, “Just do it.” I really needed the job. After finishing the betrayed donuts, I took my place at the counter, when in walked my former Sunday School teacher. She’d heard I was working there and came to support me. She asked for a dozen donuts and took an enormous amount of time deciding which filled donuts to buy. My face red, I placed the fake donuts in the box. The white lie. The guilt. To my Sunday School teacher. Where was my integrity?

Neither she or I ever brought it up. I tried to assuage my guilt reasoning perhaps no one compared their donut. Or perhaps my Sunday School teacher was showing me grace. Whichever, I long remembered the feeling of how my actions or non-actions burned inside me.

Have you ever been put in a position where you didn’t stand up for what was right? Or perhaps felt the need to say a little white lie? Maybe because of convivence? Maybe to protect ourselves or another? Or because we might lose something? We may justify it by thinking, I don’t want to hurt someone.

I remember my mother quoting, “Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive.” *

Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. Phil. 4:8-9

Do we lie out of habit or on rare occasions? And if either, what to do?

Five thoughts about being more honest.

1. Telling a lie can give more stress, and may haunt you. Remembering all your details of a lie can get you into even deeper lies.
2. If it happens, can you correct it and apologize? When we admit our mistakes, it becomes a release and we grow from it. We may gain respect from correcting a wrong. More importantly, our loved ones also grow from seeing our vulnerability and demonstrating the need for integrity.
3. Being honest doesn’t mean we need to hurt someone. Take time to think about what to say measuring how you would feel if on the receiving end.
4. Accept the consequences of our actions. Living with the harm or guilt can weigh down our lives. In the end, we must surrender our hearts to God. If we can’t make amends due to the person’s absence, we can pray for the person, own our actions, and ask forgiveness.
5. Learn from others you respect for their honest character. How did they deal with a situation they were tempted to lie?

Be sure to share in the comments. Looking forward to hearing your stories or helpful ways.

*Quote from Sir Walter Scott’s play “Marmion.”