Transparency is not a word I hear often but it is a word that describes some of my best friends. In fact, it is transparency in the lives of my friends that I credit for growing my faith the most in the last 5 to 10 years. The older I get …..the more I have grown to love the “complete honesty” of people in my life. It is one thing to “air dirty laundry,” as some would call it, like my parents. But for me? I call it…confessing of sin….failure…being vulnerable…..that is where TRUTH resides.
I am so burdened at times for people who continually “wear a mask” or “hide out”. Somehow they have bought the lie…
>nobody cares,
>nobody will understand,
>what will they think?
>everyone else has it together,
>no one has ever experienced what I have experienced,
>their life is perfect.
To all of that I say a BIG NOT! A NOT-Ah!
Let me just say–there is not one soul walking the face of the earth that hasn’t endured something that is painful, shameful, embarrassing, or all three. frown emoticon You see, we all walk around broken….broken. First, in need of a Savior but also in need of a “good samaritan”. Someone to walk with us and shoulder the burdens, to bandage our wounds. Sometimes a bandage is just a “listening ear” or a “prayer on our behalf.”
A lie we tell ourselves, or we believe from the enemy’s whispers, is to keep to ourselves. “Isolate!” I can promise you that to “isolate” or separate is a tool of the enemy. Learning to be transparent with God is a first step. Talk to God as if He were your best friend, because He is.
Next, ask Him to show you someone to confide in. James 5:16, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” Maybe it is not your sin but you have been hurt by someone else’s sin. The key is to find someone to be vulnerable with who can pray with you…listen and support. There is something to being able to share with someone. Scripture teaches that HEALING RESIDES THERE!
Understand, being transparent, vulnerable with others–of course being wise with who you choose–can help you heal. You will also discover, as I have, that EVERYONE has “stuff,” “pain,” “sin” that needs confessing. When the “wound is drained,” then healing can begin.
I can personally give testimony that, in the last year, I have deepened a relationship with several people who have become transparent with me, and I with them. It has promoted healing….relationship…and strengthened my faith and prayer life.
I encourage you to seek God and be vulnerable there, first. Then, seek someone to share with who will listen and help carry your “burden!” Also, strengthen your shoulder to help carry and support them. I guarantee you they will need your shoulder as well at some point. I have found when you open the door of transparency many will follow you through that very same door.
Proverbs 16:24, “Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body.”