I'm an advocate for honesty, in all situations.

I believe honesty breeds community.

This week God reminded me why.

On two seperate nights, I was blessed to sit down with two different groups of friends and just listen.

There is something powerful about a sky full of stars and a heart pouring itself out. There is something powerful in the moment when actions and regrets are spoken out of broken, scarred hearts and into the atmosphere of faith and community.

Shame and guilt are two of Satan's closest friends. They help hide and conceal and they manifest themselves in ways that keep us far from community. He knows that there is power in numbers, in a group of people unafraid to speak the truth, even if that means vulnerability. If shame and guilt are the problem, then vulnerability is the force that abolishes it. Being brave enough to speak the truth, to open up, even if just for a few words, shines a fantastic light on the darkness of sin and shame. It is in that light that others are able to see God working in their own lifes and through their own struggles. Honesty breeds community because it encourages others to be honest with their own walks. Though it's easy to believe the lie that vulnerability is dangerous, and that staying in the dark would be easier, it's actually the opposite that's true. Vulnerability, though terrifying in the moment, brings relief and clarity and honest.

If you're struggling right now, and are facing walls of fear, I promise you this: even though there is security in secrecy, there is so much more freedom in honesty.

In one week, this truth has been proved to me twice.

May God use your honesty and your story to shape the lives around love.

With His Love,

Maddie