Embracing the Rawness of Your Reality

Hey Majestic Daughter! What's happening?

I have had the most challenging time being vulnerable about my mistakes, weaknesses, failures, setbacks, etc. I put up an invisible guard to keep people from entering into my personal space and invading it.

One of the reasons that I started to guard my rawness is there was a time that I allowed my vulnerability to show but it was used against me.

For several years, I lived behind a mask of perfection and people thinking that I have it all together, but there are moments that I don't have all the answers and I need direction. Often when I go through these challenging times, I found myself alone trying to make sense of the chaos around me.

How many of you are cringing at thought of your imperfect, raw moments that make you vulnerable to public opinion. Do you find it painful to open yourself up when you're in a struggle? I totally understand! I am the person that would only share a struggle after it became a testimony.

Moving forward in 2020 I am committed to sharing the rawness of my reality because I do have moments that it gets pretty ugly. It's in my ugly that I lose the strength to pray and praise. It's during those moments that I struggle to fight or take flight with people and even my relationship with God.

This year you and I will be open to sharing our mistakes. It's the mistakes that draw us towards spiritual growth. Even in our rawness, God is in it with us. The word says, "And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and care called according to his purpose for them." (Romans 8:28)

One of the other reasons that I've held back my vulnerable moments is I've secretly spent time comparing my journey to others picture perfect moments. Not realizing that along the way their journeys have been edited many times to get where they are currently.

Everyone experiences struggles, hiccups, failures - the raw reality that they too had to sit in an uncomfortable situation and process life. If you take assessment of your own life you will find that there are lots of imperfect moments that you had to embrace to get where you are today.

When you and I don't share our truth, it tends to hold us back from pursuing God given ideas, posting our truth, or fully embracing the vision God has given us for our lives. All because the journey wasn't picture perfect as we expected.

Before I keep writing....let's pause for a second. I have to shift the paradigm of what I am telling you to embrace. This also has to be the year that we are raw with our reality with God first. Before we seek counsel from others, "Have you prayed about it?" Too often you and I are seeking others before we seek God's face.

Let's take a moment to review two of my favorite people's stories from the bible that are still inspiring us today because God allowed the rawness of their reality to be shared.

First, we have...

1. Hannah was a barren married woman. In her deep anguish she prayed to the Lord, weeping bitterly. Hannah was praying fervently before the Lord to the point that Eli the priest saw her and thought she was drunk. (1 Samuel 1:10-18)

Through this we see the rawness of her pain described as anguish and grief. Through her willingness to get in the presence of God, the word was fulfilled..."For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them." (John 18:20) There Eli came into agreement that her request would be granted her request and she would find favor with God.

Eventually, God opened Hannah's womb and she birthed her son Samuel. For you and me, God will honor our bold and decisive act to seek Him first.

Next up we have...

2. Jesus who is our Lord and Savior. He goes to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. He expresses to Peter and the two sons of Zebedee that his soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.

Jesus goes on a little further and falls to his face to pray that if it's in God will to take the cup from him. He prays three times before the hour comes for him to be delivered into the hands of sinners. (Matthew 26:36-46)

I love how in (Luke 22:44) Luke brings light to what was happening physically, mentally and spiritually to what Jesus was experiencing. This goes back to the rawness that you need to embrace in your life.

Even Jesus had a moment of weakness that drove him into mental anguish. You find him praying fervently like Hannah. Luke makes a comparison that his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.

In the suffering that was come there was a struggle to embrace it. If you study this more, you find that in Jesus rawness an angel appeared to give him additional strength.

I challenge you to get uncomfortable in embracing the rawness of your reality. As you travel this journey you are going to make mistakes, have struggles, and setbacks. Your journey isn't perfect, but Jesus is. He makes the rawness of your reality possible so that his strength can be made perfect in your weakness. (2 Corinthians 12:9)

Share this with some who may need to read this message!