Stop Being Afraid

Posted by on Nov 29, 2018 in Blog | 0 comments

Let’s be honest, most of us hide who we truly are because we are afraid of what other people will think about us, let alone gossip about us behind our backs!  So, instead we wear a mask of perfection, meaning everything is great, my life looks exactly like I portray it to be on Facebook. (How many likes did I get for that post?)  Yet, in reality, it couldn’t be farther from the truth!

My question is why?  Why do we put on an act?  Why do we care so much about what other people think?  Why do we make believe instead of being real?  Why can’t we be honest about our ugly parts as we showcase our pretend existence?

The AnswerWe are afraid. Afraid of rejection, afraid to fail, afraid we’re not good enough in the eyes of the world, afraid to be rebuked, afraid to change, afraid to be vulnerable…the list can go on, but the bottom line is we’re afraid.

STOP!

STOP!

STOP!

Friend, you and I both cannot launch into 2019 in fear.  2019 could finally be our best year…if we could be honest.

So how do we get honest about our deepest fear….who we truly are….the good, the bad, and the ugly?  You know the ugly I’m talking about.  The kids driving you crazy and you temporarily leave your body with screaming out of patience rage ugly!  Or, where you and your spouse present to be best friends in public yet when you get home, you and the other half walk in the door together and then part ways until the happy united façade has to happen again.  Or, the person contemplating suicide.  Or, the ugly where you are looking at porn while your other half is taking care of the kids and cooking dinner.  Or, the person who gets home and drinks a bottle of wine or six beers or takes pills to numb the pain of life.  Or, the person who has so much sadness from lowering their standards to the breadcrumbs of mediocrity to a job they can’t stand instead of waiting for the feast of excellence to the job of their dreams.  Or, the person who has to get to the airport in time, but there is traffic and the road rage ugly headed twisted monster appears!  You get what I’m stepping in.  These ugly moments of who we really are. 

The ugly moments of truth that we hide 6-feet deep within because we feel if anyone knows the real us, we feel we would be outcasted to solo land.  Ostracized for life.  Instead we pretend…because no one likes ugly…resulting in hiding our authenticity. Sadly, we hide ourselves so beautifully to the world, and stay brokenly pieced like a mosaic stain glassed window.

So how do we get vulnerable and brave? We have to trust in who we are. Trust we are beautifully created, yet flawed with imperfection.  We are imperfectly perfect.  A beautiful disaster.  Like broken pieces of the stained glass patched together for wholeness, we must own our full selves!  Good, Bad, and Ugly!

It’s time to realize that not everyone will like us (shocker), and be okay with it.  The right people will like us for who we are. It’s time to realize no one is truly perfect.  Anyone who claims to have a perfect life is not really living.  It’s time to realize other people are silently suffering too.  It takes one person to speak up and be honest about their ugly moments.  It’s go-time to be brave and live authentically in a world full of imposters.

Friend, it’s time for us to take off our masks and say how we truly feel, think, want, dream, and need for our lives.  Yes, being vulnerable about our weaknesses, pains, hardships, and struggles are scary because it requires honesty.  But, would you rather have people like the real you instead of a false version of what you pretend to be? You might be able to fake the world, but God knows your truth.  Relish in the truth that you are not alone, we all have ugly moments!

How will 2019 look?  Will it look the same as 2018 or will it finally be the year of yes! Yes to the real you. Yes to getting the help you need. Yes to quitting the job you can’t stand. Yes to taking a chance. Yes to saying goodbye to a cancerous mirage. Yes to owning your good, bad, and ugly and not being afraid to be who you really are? No more regrets, no more hiding, no more wearing a perfect mask, no more suffering in silence, no more being afraid!  You got this!  I believe in you…the real you, the imperfectly perfect you.  Remember, You Matter.

What is your ugly?  How can I pray for you?

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