The Vulnerable

Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight, but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.    
( Hebrews 4:13)

Someone once said, “What is most personal is most general.” Meaning that if I write about my most private feelings, thoughts, experiences and faults, people will recognize these things in themselves. For instance, here are some lyrics from one of my songs:

Oh the chocolate gimme trouble.

Yes the chocolate gimme trouble.

I’ll knock a devil through the wall

And dance on the rubble,

But the chocolate gimme trouble.

Every chocolate addict in the country feels that chorus. Many a sad love song tops the charts because many a sad heart has been broken. If I were to share my deepest anguish, those who share that pain could relate to what I say.

Though hyper-vulnerability is enticing, I find it easy to resist that temptation. I don’t care to expose myself to criticism and judgment. It is not useful to strip down and climb the public pyre to the burning stake of shame. There is a universe of difference between the wise courage of love and the foolish masochism of self-hatred.

In private counseling or sharing with my friends, when someone needs to know that they are not alone in this struggle, I do confess my weaknesses. There have been times, though, when those I have shared with were disillusioned with me. That’s OK. Illusions need to be dissed. They serve no good purpose.

Christ, being the first and last truth, disabuses us of our precious misbeliefs. He often leads us to reject the gods we create in our own minds. As He reveals His true Nature to us, we face our false notions about Him; by his grace, we reject the christ we create for the Christ who creates us. We die to our selves when we come alive to His truth.

As for exposure of the most personal, He hung naked on a tree, covered with all that shames us. It is impossible to overestimate such love.