The Secret Room

A friend who is a cop told me about a bust they did of a middle age husband and father who had a secret room in his basement filled with child porn. He said that the man’s wife and kids knew the room was there, but that it was paddle locked shut and they were not allowed in it. It was “Dad’s secret room.” 

Horrible. I know. But that’s not the only time I’ve heard of secret rooms. I’ve run across it in marriage counseling…men having a room where their wife and children were never allowed to enter. In other words, those men did not really want to be married. To keep a part of your life separate for yourself like that is not being married. Marriage is opening your life and sharing everything with your spouse (one flesh). I’ve told women that I would not recommend staying in a fake marriage where the husband maintains a secret anything, any part of his life where his wife is “not allowed.” 

I know very few men who are actually like that. But I know a lot of supposed Christians who are. They profess to follow Jesus, but he isn’t really Lord…at least not when it comes to that secret room in their hearts. That secret room is that pet area, behavior, protected sin, where God is not allowed. They're good with praying, bringing their Bible to church, singing worship songs and even telling others that they are Christian, but that anger issue, or that addiction, filthy language around coworkers, or whatever it might be, God isn’t allowed there.…that’s another matter.

But Jesus said that he will have no part of us if we are holding back a part of our lives that we are unwilling to surrender. He said, “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?” (Luke 6:46). Of course we are going to mess up and make mistakes, just like every married person does at times. But that’s different from keeping a paddle locked room where the wife is not allowed to enter. Jesus isn’t willing to have that kind of superficial relationship with us. For Jesus, it’s all or nothing.

Do you have a secret room? Is it time to clean it out and open it up? There is such freedom when we surrender all. Why not now?