Without authenticity, there is no vulnerability.
Without vulnerability, there is no intimacy.
Without courage to be authentic, the connections God created for you cannot happen.
Everything you are—your authentic self, your story, your imperfections, your fears, your dreams, your past,—all God has created you to be is a beautiful pearl to treasure and share with those who value your whole heart.
The Extraordinary Results of Anchoring Together
Formed by adversity of sand and surf, true pearls are imperfect, yet they carry great value to those who understand, appreciate, and respect the journey of this jewel. When a pearl comes out of its shell to connect with other treasures, something special happens.
A pearl alone is a beautiful treasure, but when anchored with other treasures on a strong strand, the results are extraordinary.
Similarly, when we are authentic with one another and held together by God’s agape love, we find the true connection God created us for.
But great courage is required for this true connection. Experience has taught us to fear bringing our real selves to the table. Perhaps that deep desire for connection deceived our hearts and we made bad decisions to share our treasure with those who had no empathy or because of their own pain could not value our journey.
- We shared our story but felt shame from others.
- We put ourselves out there and failed.
- We loved greatly only to be rejected.
- We trusted and were betrayed.
- We lived and we were labeled.
And so we falsely believed we were not enough. We stopped really living. We hid. We shut down. We made perfection our goal to shield rejection. We stayed on the surface and had many acquaintances but nothing deep.
In our shame, we pulled others down to prop ourselves up. We swung between the two extremes of hiding or trying to hot-wire connection by giving our pearls away to those who trampled on them.
Opening Your Heart Takes Courage to Be Vulnerable
Opening your heart again to community after you have been hurt or betrayed takes a tremendous amount of courage. I know this from personal experience. I know how the fear of rejection can paralyze your heart.
And I also know from experience that stepping back into a healthy biblical community one baby step at a time is a vital part of healing.
Part of that journey for me was walking in close fellowship with a small group of women in my Nourish Together Group. They carried trust and had the courage to be vulnerable with me. When this happened, my soul relaxed, and ever so slowly my shell opened and my true self . . . my story of failure . . . my fears . . . my imperfections fell inside the safety net of their trust and agape love.
The courage to share your pearls wisely and find true connection comes from embracing your core authentic God-given identity and inviting others to do the same.
Why is this a solution?
Join me for Facebook Live on Wednesday to unpack this truth deeper so you can become brave with your heart and carry trust to help others open their shells and share their pearls.
Nourish Scripture: Jeremiah 1
Blog written by Aliene Thompson. Aliene Thompson is the founder of Treasured Ministries and the Author of the Nourish Bible Study Series. © 2019 Treasured Ministries.
