Together we are stronger in our weaknesses than we are apart in our strengths.
I heard someone say the phrase on KLove, and I just kind of shrugged my shoulders and changed the station. I really hate listening to people I don't know talk in the car. Talk radio physically makes me angry. I can't tell you why, but over the years I've just learned to change the station when someone is talking or when there's a commercial running about how cheap a new truck is or how I can go tanning really cheap somewhere.
Together we are stronger in our weaknesses than we are apart in our strengths....
A few months ago I published a post called "My Deepest Confession." I spent about forty-five minutes putting it together, and it was unlike anything I've ever published before. I posted nearly every selfie of myself that I've taken in the last year, and then briefly told a story of struggling with body image issues.
My story is not uncommon. It's like that of many girls strewn about the world. You look in the mirror, you don't like what you see, you struggle to change those physical qualities, you become discouraged, and then try to take matters into your own hands. Some girls cut, some girls don't eat, some girls eat too much and make themselves sick, and some just binge. I experimented with a little bit of each of those things. This phase of my life was (thankfully) short lived. It's not something I talk about often, and it's not something I like to go into detail about.
I shared a brief glimpse into this part of my life, and was brave enough to share it on another social media platform. I didn't expect much, it only took me about an hour to throw together one afternoon when the particular topic was on my heart. Within 48 hours it had been shared a little less than a dozen times and had over 200 page views. In the big scheme of life I know that isn't very many, but it's more than I've ever had before. My inbox on Facebook and my text messages were overflowing. I received message after message with people saying things like "Wow. I can't believe you feel that way. I've felt like that my entire life. Thanks for being brave enough to post that." And time after time I just stared in disbelief.
At church the following week I had an older woman in our congregation approach me with tears in her eyes and told me that she understood where I was coming from and how she never wants anyone to feel the way she had felt growing up. She gave me some words of encouragement, hugged me tightly, and walked away. A few hours later another woman approached me and told me that she wished her granddaughters could grasp and understand what I was saying about inner beauty.
That post has come up several times over the last several weeks and each time I end up having profound conversations with those around me. I didn't expect that at ALL.
Together we are stronger in our weaknesses than we are apart in our strengths.
Do you want to know why I think people shared and liked "My Deepest Confession" more than anything I've ever written before? Do you want to know why I think people still come up to me and bring it up in conversation? (Even if you don't...I'm going to tell you anyway so brace yourself...)
People didn't like it because it was well written. People didn't like it because I posted 7392018462394 pictures of myself.
It was one of the most transparent and honest things I've ever written, and I think people liked it because it was real.
And when I realized that, it really tripped me out. I've spent a majority of my life trying to filter that "realness" when I'm around others. Surely people don't want to hear about the unfiltered "real." Right?
Surely people don't want me to admit that I struggle with insecurity and anxiety. People don't want to read a blog post about someone who's struggling or being a regular human being. Nobody wants that.
Seriously folks, I've been racking my brain for weeks trying to figure this one out. Why on earth would such a small post be full of so many emotions? Because I was honest. And the more I thought about that, the more I realized that in my own life, when I look back and consider the moments where people impacted me the most, I was drawn to (and often overwhelmed by) their transparency.
Together we are stronger in our weaknesses than we are apart in our strengths.
On a whim, I opened up and shared a weakness that I have. Not expecting a thing to come of it. But the Lord used that weakness, united a bunch of people, and He used many people to encourage me as well! People opened up to one another, and I think several personal relationships of my own were made stronger.
Together we are stronger in our weaknesses than we are apart in our strengths.
Thank God.
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