The White Lie

A common misconception is that at times it is ok to lie so long as it's a small lie for a good cause. Our culture calls these 'white lies'. 

A good example is a woman who asks her spouse how she looks in a dress. For one reason or another the truth is that the dress is not attractive, but for the sake of keeping the peace, her spouse tells her she looks nice. In this case he has lied in order to avoid an awkward situation. He lied in order to support her self esteem. 

Another reason why people sometimes do this is to 'protect' someone. A parent might tell a small lie to their children in order to 'preserve their innocence' or 'preserve their childhood'. 

Now here is my major point with this article. At the end of the day, the size of the lie does not matter. When you lie to people, you lie to yourself, you weaken people's confidence in you, and you sell your character cheaply. Telling small lies is not one bit different from telling large lies. In fact, if you can't tell the truth and be honest about little matters, what makes you thing you will be honest in more serious matters?  Large lies almost always start with small lies. 

Now I'm not saying be blunt and rude. I'm saying be honest. If your spouse wears an unattractive article of clothing, tell them they would look better in something else. It does not matter the circumstance. We must strive to always be honest. They will appreciate your telling the truth, as opposed to finding out later on that you lie, so they can't have confidence when they ask such questions.