the beauty of transparency

Eph 6:16 "....take up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one."

Flaming arrows. Aren't regular, non-flammable arrows bad enough? I mean do they really have to be on fire as they streamline straight to one's heart and mind? Boy, have we felt the blow, the fire, the piercing "of the evil one" lately. And believe me we know there are sharper arrows out there that others have experienced in comparison to ours. But, you know how when it is you, it can seem so hard. One of my campers, a couple of weeks ago, was struggling with that too familiar ailment called homesickness. As she would begin to feel it, her eyes would find me and seconds later her arms were locked in position around my waist. Her words: "its just so hard". It is hard when its you. The beauty of her struggle was her pure honesty of it. She knew she had the struggle and she knew she needed support. So she unashamedly sought it out and overcame the issue. Thanks for the example BB! And for all the hugs :)!
The past couple of weeks have brought me to a point of realizing the necessity of transparency for healing. There are physical things that people recognize as common among man. Reflux is one of them. When you start talking about having reflux, you realize everyone else you know has it to. Something is wrong with that picture to me. I mean, why are we all struggling with it. Are our bodies in that much of a mess? We need to straighten ourselves out people!! Our bodies are temples of the Most High God!! Okay, that was totally a rabbit trail I just chased....Back to the point. There are other issues that feel so dark, hidden, uncommon to anyone, and shameful. One I know personally is the "a" word. ANXIETY! I've mentioned before that I struggle with it. Lately, it hasn't been a struggle. It's been an all out war. And my mind, the battlefield. It is a target in which the evil one shoots his flaming arrows. So what does transparency have to do with it? Well, it has always been one of those things that my immediate family, (husband, mom, sister), knows about me, and then a couple of very close friends. But its not a conversation I normally have with people. 'Til now. As the reflux has improved :), the nerves are still raging. So when people ask, "how are you?", I honestly say, "a mess". The result of that is commonality! Not, that these people are all basket cases, but they get it. They get that life is not always easy, Christian or not. They get that sometimes we just need to be understood and to get some additional help and that's okay. Scripture says to take up the shield of faith to extinguish those flaming arrows. Faith is belief. Belief in a man who was fully God, lived a sinless life, was completely dead (by crucifixion), and then who was the subject of a glorious resurrection. Belief in the complete story of His existence and the power it has in one's life. In my life. Faith is a common place where Christians find themselves. Faith is understanding the ties that we have in the family of God. The ability for me to be transparent, yet completely loved and supported in return. And then to find God's grace in it all. How He orchestrates and weaves His hand through unexpected phone calls consisting of incredible humbling prayers, lunch time w/ friends who you now know really get where you are at and how reassuring that is. Without the transparency, you don't get the same results. You miss the blessing God has in store for you. The other thing is how will people know how much I need God if they don't know how much I struggle. I'm thankful for the dependence I feel towards God right now. I'm thankful for the assurance that I have in Him. Not assurance that I will be fine at all times and that He protects me from harm. It's the assurance that when I'm not fine, when I'm in harm's way (even if its only seemingly as w/ anxiety), He is in complete control. He is my victory. Transparency: feels naked, feels vulnerable, feels shameful. But, truly, its a beautiful thing! Try it out!
Last thought: to my friends who had a conversation with me today at any time about my struggles, Thank You!