Top Two Reasons You Should Stop Lying PLUS How Liars Get Caught

In my blog How to Stop Lying I listed eight things you can do to help break the bad habit of lying.
But I don’t just want to give you tips on how to stop lying. I want to motivate you by giving you two very important reasons WHY you should stop.

Top Two Reasons You Should Stop Lying

First of all, NOBODY wants to be friends with a liar because liars can’t be trusted, and they hurt other people with their lies…often in order to protect themselves. If you desire any REAL relationships in your life, you need to be trustworthy.

Second, liars will eventually get caught, and deservedly so. Lying is a destructive force and it will catch up to you.
In fact, I want to use the rest of this blog to help protect people from liars. Below is a list of a number of signals to watch for if you think someone may be lying. It’s not going to be completely possible to know every time someone lies, but there are definite signs that should send up a red flag.

Ericka told me about some of the pain caused by the lying of her ex-husband: I have two young children (3 & 1) and just left their father because he was addicted to gambling. I always thought that cheating would be the worst, but I soon discovered that along with gambling came lie after lie. Our relationship was never going to improve without trust. Discovering his lying earlier could possibly have saved Ericka and her children some needless pain. Would that be possible? I believe it is possible by figuring out how to know if someone is lying.

Lying is a stressful behavior, and it causes people to act differently when they lie.

We’ve all seen people take lie detector tests on TV or in the movies. It is an effective instrument, not because it can tell right from wrong, but because it can reveal when a person’s body is reacting in a stressful manner. Because lying is so wrong, it can cause stressful behavior, showing signs we can detect through body language.

It is important to learn to read body language. How does a person act in normal circumstances? Notice normal eye, hand and body movements, and facial expressions during regular conversation. Then you will better notice when the body language changes…showing the stress of lying.

One of the easiest and best ways to tell if someone is lying is by looking into their eyes. Most people who are lying have a difficult time holding eye contact with the person they’re lying to. Jenna agrees: It is hard to tell when people are lying to you. But in my case, I found that when someone is lying, they don’t give you eye contact.

8 More Signs Someone May Be Lying to You:

How to Catch a Liar:

  • A lying person may become tense and freeze up while telling the lie. Others may move their body way more than normal.
  • A lying person may appear uncomfortable fast eye blinking, scratching, itching, swallowing hard, fidgeting, etc.
  • A lying person may look up and to the right.
  • A lying person may touch their nose or cover up their face or mouth.
  • A lying person may often raise the pitch or speed of their voice.
  • A lying person may present a wide-eyed, innocent look.
  • A lying person may create noticeable pauses in the conversation as they are trying to come up with something to say that fits the lie they are creating.
  • A lying person often tells a different version of their original lie the second time around.

You’re not always going to be able to discover if a person is lying to you, but usually if it feels like a lie, it almost always is.

My desire is to help both those who lie and those who have been lied to. I care for you equally. So, it is my hope that if you are in the habit of lying you will stop and think twice. Know that your lies will ruin friendships and you will eventually get caught. And if you believe you are being lied to, trust your gut and confront the person you believe is being dishonest. It will be best for both of you in the long run.

Dawson McAllister
Dawson McAllister, also known as America's youth pastor, was an author, radio host, speaker, and founder of TheHopeLine. McAllister attended Bethel College in Minnesota for undergraduate work where he graduated in 1968, began graduate studies at Talbot School of Theology in California, and received an honorary doctorate from Biola University.
Keep Reading
Start Your Hope Journey Now!
Step 1:  Choose a topic
Step 2: Explore our resources
Step 3: Chat with a hope coach

More Like This

Subscribe Now

We will not share your information and we will only send you stuff that matters!
Quick Links

50 comments on “Top Two Reasons You Should Stop Lying PLUS How Liars Get Caught”

  1. I have lied to my wife about lots of things . I know that I have caused her great pain and the damaged I have caused by lying. I recently asked god into my life . I told god to take the bitterness out of my heart . I asked god to forgive me and to change me . I know there is a lot of work and repair I have to do . My question is how do I help my wife heal and move on besides from just telling the truth. I made a vow to God to be more open and honest and transparent with my life everyday . How do I help my wife heal after I have hurt her !

  2. I need help and I hate myself for always lying to my girlfriend/fiance,I know its not normal and when I do so I know its wrong and I don't feel right doing so but I still do it. I know I have lost her and she deserves better than me. Please God i need help before I do something that to myself. Not just lying to her but to my family also.

  3. I always tend to lie to mt boyfriend and i know its unhealthy for our relationship, but please can someone help me to stop this nightmare of addcition? I dont know but lying seemed to be my normal habbit now, is this normal? Gosh, please i need help.

  4. My Grandson has been lying for 5 years and we are having him write an essay about Why I Should Stop Lying. i read the Article s i know if he used more than 50 words from here but were starting to trust him sure he lye's about something little and we remind him not too lye not in a rude way but not in a kind way either but he is starting to clean his act from only this Article. Whoever wrote this...
    T H A N K Y O U !

    1. You're welcome! We loved reading your comment and how this article has helped your grandson. He is fortunate to have a grandparent in his life that cares about him and wants him to be the best person he can be.

  5. My daughter has crashed and burned so many times for lying and just doesn't get that this is ruining her life. Therapists and psychiatrist s just medicate which doesn't help and she is caught in the cycle thinking depression and suicidal thoughts cause her lying and not the other way around. What can a parent of a young adult do? I wish there was some sort of a lye detector she could wear to alert herself... She does it so much she doesn't even realize it. Addicted

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

POST COMMENTS

Tired of The Problem?  Try the Solution.

Privacy Policy / Terms of Use
© 2024 TheHopeLine, Inc. Registered 501(c)(3). EIN: 20-1198064
© 2021 core.oxyninja.com. Powered by OxyNinja Core
magnifiercrosschevron-down