Hiding in the walls

You know where I go and where I lie down. You know everything I do. Lord, even before I say a word, you already know it. You are all around me—in front and in back— and have put your hand on me. Your knowledge is amazing to me; it is more than I can understand. Where can I go to get away from your Spirit? Where can I run from you? (Psalm 139:3-7) 

A few weeks ago, David got a little more than he bargained for in his latest house renovation. What started as a simple modernization of a few electrical outlets in his former office took an unexpected turn in both project scope and discovery.  

David’s VA Beach house was built in 1962, so most of the electrical outlets are ungrounded – meaning, you can’t just plug a standard device into them. The outlets are currently equipped to receive 2-prong plugs – not the standard 3-prong plugs that most modern electronics require. Updating his former home is a strategic goal of David’s, so upgrading the outlets is an integral part of this process.  

Before we could start laying new Pergo flooring in his former office, David emptied the room and prepared to make a few minor cuts in the walls to access the outlets. After turning off the electricity, David soon learned that an unexpected nick to one of the cords had severed power to the room.  

To repair the damage, David needed to rip open the wall to run new wire into the space. Convoluted wiring inevitably required multiple walls to be opened for David to make his repairs. Up, down, and sideways, the home’s wiring led from just a few feet off the floor into the attic and back down again – only to return up, down, and sideways across the room.  

“This wiring is a mess,” David explained when I peeked into the room. “They must have used 20-feet more wire than was necessary.” 

“Wow,” was all I could say after glimpsing the plaster-covered drop-cloth and open walls for the first time. “I was wondering what was going on in here.” 

After a night spent contemplating his next course of action, David made his final cuts to the plaster close to the room’s entrance.  

That’s when he made his unexpected discovery. “Honey, you should see what I found in the wall,” David called.  

“If it’s dead bugs, I’d rather not see them,” I rebuffed. I have a mortal hatred of insects that cross the threshold, as David has learned.  

“It’s not bugs,” David replied. “Come see!”  

The wall behind David’s office door always boasted a hand-sized hole – presumably from where the doorknob had dinged the plaster. In addition to repairing the wiring, David anticipated patching the spot when he took on this “small” project.  

Much to our amazement, David unearthed a treasure trove of children’s toys while cutting this final wall, presumably dropped into the space by a former occupant. Freed from their confinement, the following storehouse of trinkets sat sprawled across the floor for my viewing amazement: 

• 3 Matchbox cars 
• A 2” rubber Ernie and his fellow Sesame Street buddy, Elmo 
• A 2” tall rubber horse 
• A 3-legged, 4” black velvet-covered horse  
• A blue and yellow felt hat – screen-printed with the word “Sprint” across the folded headband 
• A vinyl, bifold Spiderman wallet (sans money, sorry to say. I checked, of course.) 

“Oh, my gosh,” I exclaimed upon witnessing David’s discoveries. “I’ll bet the parents of whoever dropped those toys in the wall were always wondering where they escaped to!”  

As we laughed over the tiny treasures, I couldn’t resist saying, “Too bad you didn’t find any gold doubloons in there. Let me know if you do!”  

While later pondering David’s unexpected bounty, I couldn’t help but wonder what possessed that young child from placing his or her toys in the wall. Surely, he or she learned quickly that such an action couldn’t be undone. There was simply no way to unearth the bounty without massive repercussions. Was the child simply done with the toys and didn’t care about them anymore – or was there excitement in merely hiding the trophies? Could this act have been vengeful, or was he or she too young to know better?  

We’ll never know, but the considerations got me thinking of how we, as Christians, frequently believe we can do the same. How often do we try to hide our sinful nature, hoping no one will notice what we’re doing in private? Do we ever consider the penalties of such sin or the ramifications of the same? While we may get away with our actions for a time, such efforts are pointless.  

The Bible has a lot to say about hidden sin. Here are just a few examples:  

• Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed or hidden that will not be known. (Luke 12:2) 
• Nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light. (Luke 8:17) 
• Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. (Galatians 6:7) 

In short, God sees and knows everything. We may successfully hide our transgressions from earthly eyes, but our Heavenly Father can never be deceived. That thought always sobers me as I contemplate standing before the throne of God and giving an account of my life’s deeds – both good and bad. I long to hear Christ say, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” (Matthew 25: 21) Anything less would be incredibly disappointing.  

I believe honesty to be the best policy, as a result – and I vow always to be transparent and open with my husband, as I am with everyone. David and I spent hours revealing all the skeletons in our closets long before we ever got serious about one another. I never want there to be any secrets between the two of us.  

More importantly, my wrongdoings can never be hidden from my Heavenly Father – which matters to me more than anything. “Behold, you have sinned against the Lord, and be sure your sin will find you out.” (Numbers 32:23) 

And so, David and I will keep our walls tight – never hiding our blemishes or treasures from one another or God. After all, short of gold doubloons being buried in the walls, I never want to later uncover anything that will damage my relationship with my husband – or my Creator. May we all do the same.