SECRETS!

Has anyone seen any newspaper headline today?

No doubt, many of them are sensational; bordering on issues that the parties involved would rather keep under wraps. Cringe-worthy accounts of events that the perpetrators thereof at one time or another believed were secrets. 

Today however, for a smidgen or nothing at all, the world has a front-row seat in the theatre of the events that unfolded over time behind closed doors, in hushed tones, neatly executed without outsiders having the slightest hint! 

Today, the unfiltered, uncensored details of hitherto top-secret adventures are everywhere. Out in the open. Bared in the public square of tabloids, social media and what have you.

Such is the folly of believing the lie of the possibility of concealing a matter in perpetuity.

Because you see, really and truly, there is nothing called secrets in life! 

In fact, as far as I am concerned, that word should not even exist at all! 'Why so', you may ask? 

Well, let me let you in on my 'secret' deductions! Lol!

For starters, whatever matter involves more than one individual is no longer a secret. 

Once another person knows about it, then it is only a matter of time before they confide in a close friend or relative, warning them not to reveal their little 'secret' to anyone else. 

They point out that they only opened up to their friend because of their 'closeness.' Their friend of course goes on to cross their heart in pledged allegiance to keep mute about the matter.

But you and I know that every 'bosom friend' has another bosom friend who also has another bosom friend that they confide in. 

So before long, sometimes without meaning to blow open your cover, your confidant confides in another confidant about your little secret. 

And there goes your well-kept, safe secret! 

In addition, in the course of time and owing to the dynamics of daily interactions and the consequences thereof, many secrets kind of reveal themselves. It somehow becomes glaring to discerning minds within certain contexts that some covert activities had been going on between some people. 

A good example here would be the case of a thief or robber whose sudden ostentatious lifestyle draws the attention of close observers. His unexplained wealth and lavish display of the same will certainly point to the fact that he has been dubious.

There really are no secrets in life.

Come to think of it, have you considered the fact that even the thoughts of our hearts are not secret? That is interesting if you ask me. Very interesting. 

Our thoughts are not secret! How so?

Look at what it says in Proverbs 23:7a:

"For  as he thinks in his heart so is he..."

The Bible makes it clear here that what a person does is a product of what they had been thinking about all along. 

That means that our actions betray our thoughts. 

Our actions reveal our most dominant preoccupations.

So ultimately then, our thoughts are not secret indulgences known only to us. Not at all! By our actions over time, our innermost rumination is revealed for all to see. 

No wonder someone said "thought is action in rehearsal!"

Furthermore, there is something I find fascinating about the armed forces. The fact that unknown to the majority of us civilians, covert military operations go on in different parts of the world orchestrated by rival nations both during war time as well as peace time. Espionage missions are embarked upon in rival nations with the aim of garnering insider information about the strengths, weaknesses and capabilities of potential enemy nations. These are highly dangerous, classified operations and the information so gathered are guarded with utmost secrecy.In some instances, lives have been lost in these covert missions. 

Fast forward to several decades later, when wars have been won and lost and when there is peace between former rival nations. The military decide to de-classify some of these documents. Documentaries are made out of them with actual footages of certain operations. And so people who enjoy watching documentaries like me sit in the comfort of their homes and watch blow-by-blow accounts of once highly classified espionage and other military missions! 

The bubble has burst.

The secret is out. Now everyone knows what went down a few years earlier. 

Wouldn't the world be a better place if we all lived with the consciousness that so-called secrets are no secrets after all is said and done? 

Wouldn't our lives be happier and regret-free if we lived our lives in a way that we have nothing to hide, especially in these days of technological advancement?

I have adopted the habit of always cross-checking my interactions with people. 

Before I hit the 'send' button on my correspondences with people, whether in text messages, chats or emails, I check to see that I will be able to defend that communication anytime in the future without being embarrassed. 

That I will not wish I had not sent that message sometime in the future in case it goes 'viral!' 

I remind myself that another person could see it apart from the intended recipient and that I would not be flustered in any way by someone else reading it, or hearing it as is the case with phone calls or recorded messages.

If only Potiphar's wife had thought well about her intended 'secret' affair with Joseph in Genesis 39 the story of Joseph and yes of Egypt in the bible would read differently! Her secret is everywhere especially during church services everyday, all over the world including even children's church! lol!

In conclusion I would like to point out that there is none of us who does not wish that certain aspects of our past did not happen! Regrets of wrong choices made in the past are common to us all. However, when we knowingly choose certain courses of action with the intention or hope that nobody finds out about them, then that means we are deliberately setting up ourselves for disappointment and ridicule tomorrow. 

To be sure, what I am referring to is the deliberate act of engaging in negative acts with the intention to deceive, and that you will never be found out. 

Secrets are a mirage! 

I have come to the conclusion that the only true secrets in life are the deeds that have not yet been done. 

The thoughts that have not yet been contemplated. 

The acts that have not yet been carried out.

The words that have not yet been spoken and so on.

The true meaning of a secret is a yet-to-be-discovered cover-up!

Here's praying that your life henceforth will be devoid of the foreboding and apprehension of the potential for leaked secrets! 

Shalom.