To Walk In Transparency

You know there used to be a place in time where blogs were the main source of "social media." Mom's used them to reach out to the world outside of their house walls. People used them to document life as a journal or scrapbook. Other's used them to inspire and share their hearts. The good, the bad, and the ugly... It never mattered what it was people just enjoyed reading and getting to meet new people. It seems like long gone are the days of clicking the little button on the top right hand side of your screen that read "next blog" and with baited breath waiting to see who's world you'd step into next.

Why do you thinking blogging isn't like that anymore? Does it set up a roadblock in posting for you? It does me. I think sometimes I'm not sure what to post and other times I doubt anyone will care. I miss the days of pressing next blog and meeting someone new. I miss the days of catching up on those sweet friends via the screen that God so graciously gifted my heart with. I miss having a place to look back on and see all the growth... happy, sad, and in-between.

Life has flown by and there is every excuse as to why I haven't made the time to sit and blog. There is every excuse as to why I haven't made time to sit and scrapbook. I feel like "writer's block" takes over every time I sit down to do either. Why is that the case? Am I truly my own worst enemy? I truly think I am. This year has been hard. The hardest in so long but when I sit back and look at the pictures I so badly want to print... When I look at the projects I wish I had the motivation to pull off... I am reminded that memories have taken place and they don't have to be written or made pretty to count.

I think the ease of social media platforms though have clouded our view of how/what to share of our lives. Though I hardly share personal life matters on Facebook and really post more pictures via Instagram more than anything a realness sometimes gets lost in the shuffle. We lose sight of us by comparing/keeping up with everyone else who is sharing. We forget sometimes to zoom out of the picture to see their real stories, but then I have to remind myself "they are at least sharing." I stop to ask myself things like, "are they posting because it's a memory they hope TimeHop brings back for them?" "Are they posting because they are code-ly crying out for prayer or for someone to 'see' them?"

I pose all that and the unspoken between the lines parts I'm sure you can guess because recently I had a conversation with my daughter who is seeking those "real" friends. Yes, she has some great friends. As a matter of fact I love her friends but she longs for the ones that genuinely ask her "how are you?" and when she responds that she's struggling they don't turn and chuckle and reply, "You? Yea right. What could be so bad in your life?" The truth is she does have hard times. Truth be told sometimes because of me. Because of these responses she has received over the years she has learned, too early,  to wear a fake smile and shed silent tears.

These last 13 months have rocked her hard. When I've asked her about her fake smiles though she reveals she may or may not ever really share the pain behind the smile with her friends, but she simply wants someone to genuinely notice her. A deeper relationship to harvest that trust; that when the time comes truth behind the smile can be shared. My heart aches for her and prays continuously for long lasting friendships to come her way.

Do you share the real you with the people around you or on the other side of the screen? Do you put on a fake smile and post only the good days?

I don't ask that to point fingers because I most certainly don't myself, but God has challenged me a lot lately, in light of the world around us all these days, with the questions of "why not?" Aren't we supposed to be the light in the world? Aren't we supposed to show our circles around us God in all that we do. His mercy and grace? His provision? His Will we walk whether we understand it or not?

How can we show Christ if we don't show the real behind the fake smiles? How can we show the real if we don't zoom out the picture? How can we show the growth if we don't show the struggle and open up in search of the trust of those around us?

I haven't. I get writer's block and push off the frustration. But how can we share if we never really share?

That's just as much a question for me as it was for my daughter when I asked her.

I challenge us all to share the struggle and what we are learning along the way because not only will that frame of mind help us it will shift the atmosphere around us too. Our trust and transparency could lead to breakthrough for not only us but someone also struggling to be "seen" too.