The Importance of Transparency | Chelsea Crockett
The Importance of Transparency
Transparency is the thing that makes us feel close to one another. It creates a sense of vulnerability and allows us to speak freely, without judgement or hesitation.
Think of the people you’re close to. Do you share with them the things that keep you up at night, make you jump for joy, or maybe give you aching anxiety? Do you allow them to be a listening ear when you can’t hold something in anymore?
When we allow transparency in the relationships in our lives, we feel closer and more connected. This holds true to our relationship with God, as well. When we hold back the things we’re scared of God knowing, we build a barrier between Him and us, that only gets bigger and bigger the more we close ourselves off from Him.
When I think of the word “transparent,” I remember one of my favorite passages in the Bible.
2 Corinthians 12:9-10 says, “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
There is so much truth in just these two simple verses. Paul writes about being boastful in his weaknesses because these are the areas where Christ moves and works in his life.
We should all have the same mindset as Paul. Our weaknesses are what make us human. They’re the things that God so desperately wants us to bring to him and lay at the foot of the cross. For when we are weak and allow God to see our deepest places, then we are strong!
There are way too many times when vulnerability is confused as weakness. The world has shaped openness to be something that makes us seem like we’re falling apart or don’t have it all together.
But the truth is, transparency is what brings us together. When we can rely on someone we trust to rant to, vent to, talk to, confess to, etc., it benefits us in so many ways! We open the door for others to know it’s okay to be vulnerable, whether that be in their spiritual life or their everyday life.
Next time you sit down and talk to God, lay everything out on the table. Tell him how you’ve been struggling. Confess to Him the sins you’ve kept bottling up inside. God already knows everything there is to know about us anyways!
There is always a light at the end of the tunnel that God is preparing for you. When you go through a tough situation, talk to God. Be vulnerable, be transparent, be willing.
Like Paul said, “I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” Start boasting about your weaknesses, and God will transform them into something amazing.
Chelsea is a writer, youtuber, speaker, author of "Your Own Beautiful Book", and Christian on mission to serve and love.