When Pontius Pilate was questioning Jesus, he asked several times if Jesus was really a king. Jesus replied, “You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice.” (John 18:37)

Are you “of the truth?” Would Jesus place you in that category when he comes again?

The reality is that there are many times in our lives when we have a very casual relationship with the truth. Even times when we don’t lie, but we hold information back. Or we say nothing at all.

While we don’t know much for sure about Saint Gildas, we do know that he was “of the truth.” Perhaps that is why he came to be known as Gildas the Wise. After all, wisdom is truth lived.

Saint Gildas lived the truth by condemning the corruption of British kings and clergy in his book, On the Ruin and Conquest of Britain. In the way of prophets, as Britain experienced a period of decline and turmoil, Gildas boldly proclaimed the truth and warned his contemporaries to turn back to God.

Here is an exercise inspired by Saint Gildas: Spend the next 24 hours examining your relationship with the truth. Track the times you stand in the truth and the times you don’t. How often do you stay silent when you could speak the truth? How often do you bend the truth, even a little? What temptations most often pull you away from the truth? Which people in your life are you the least truthful with? 

At the end of the day, ask: Am I “of the truth”?