“Sugar is not so sweet to the palate as sound to the healthy ear.”

Ralph Waldo Emerson

The truth is a hard pill to swallow. And doesn’t sugar make it better? Well, honestly, isn’t anything coated with sugar tastier and more delightful?

After meeting a dear friend for a “taste of truth” tea time (with honey of course), all I could think about this morning was sugar. Yep. Sugar. Not that I don’t already struggle with this “Satan spice” ….

It was 2012 and time for the educators’ annual insurance wellness check. You may be familiar with this drill~step on a scale, have parts of your body wrapped in tape, a vice-looking device to pinch your hips and thighs, your heart is heard ~a needle stick is an option. Everything seemed great and I had worked diligently to keep it that way! During my check-up just a few weeks later the doctor asked how I was modifying my diet as a “prediabetic”. I literally laughed.

For years my sugar was LOW. How many can relate? You skip a meal or don’t have enough sugar~then BAM!~ your shirt is wet, the room is spinning, and you’re not really sure even where you are or what you’re doing.

TRUTH- Sugar was a staple in our house growing up. Momma could concoct (and still does) a spread superior to a King’s chef. And the more sugar, the better. I still remember putting a WHOLE CUP of sugar in a pitcher to make Kool-Aid. Oh Yeaah! For sugar’s sake, DO NOT add water to spilled sugar and expect anything less than a severely sticky situation. Momma, if you’re reading this I’m not BLAMING you for my diagnosis. We ALL know the metamorphosis you’ve experienced in the galley since Dad was diagnosed. Wait a minute….I can actually blame Dad?

Sugar has been an “influencer” indeed. Even in my 20’s~pregnant and diagnosed with “gestational diabetes” (what the heck?)~sugar was more of a foe than friend. It’s definitely superior in hiding the bitter! And unfortunately, is an ADDICT. It creates a short-term high in the body.

“Some studies have suggested sugar is as addictive as cocaine…..

Addiction Center, addictioncenter.com, 2020

So is it any surprise that us mortals like our words to hide the taste of bitterness? It’s safer to live “status quo”~to not allow the sugar to dissolve and reveal the hidden unpalatable tastes. Encouraging words and compliments are pleasing. I pride myself on being an encouragement to others~a “complimenter” if you will! It’s extremely 2nd nature for me to instantly find something GOOD IN SOMEONE or in anything I see. And when just a “wee” bit of truth or bitterness starts to surface what do I do? I apply honey! Or sugar (yikes!) Or even worse, artificial sweeteners (oy vey!-I won’t run down that rabbit hole about the chemical structures of those bench-warming back-ups…..).

Even the bitterness of life can taste the sweetness of authenticity. I have fallen “flat on my faith” on the hardened floor of truth~only to stand and embrace the fidelity of my own mind and heart~that the spirit of Christ fulfills me. And that is a bona fide, non-sugar-coated fact.

Karla H.

Do you sugar-coat? Don’t get me wrong…..I understand the NEED for an occasional dash of “sweetness” to make someone feel better. If you are currently sampling a few truthful words from those around you please try 1) to not allow toxic words and thoughts to permeate your brain (this is detrimental to your physical and emotional well-being), 2) to seek wise counsel through prayer and petition with those who are Christ-minded to affirm everlasting truths, 3) LET GO OF THE PAST, embrace the NOW, and stop worrying about the future.

“You cannot sit back and wait to be happy and healthy and have a great thought life; you have to make the choice to make this happen. You have to choose to get rid of the toxic and get back in alignment with God. You can be overwhelmed by every small setback in life, or you can be energized by the possibilities they bring.”

― Caroline Leaf, Switch On Your Brain: The Key to Peak Happiness, Thinking, and Health

You may be sprinkling on some sugar today~it tastes very sweet and good. Perhaps you’ve licked off the coating and everything seems bitter. No matter what life is feeding you today…….live abundantly and in truth. You are loved no matter what.