Last week I was in a conversation with a dear-heart friend of mine. As we were chatting over coffee [of course!], we were talking about being guarded, and that we respond in many situations by putting our guards up and not allowing people in. And almost before I really thought about it, I said “I wonder how many times I treat the Lord in the same guarded way.” Let me just tell you.. that’ll preach! Let me explain what I’m talking about. And since the Lord just loves making me use my own self as an illustration to break up any form of [false] security I think I have… here goes.
After believers have let you down, or exposed vulnerable places in your heart to others, it’s quite easy to put up a wall or barrier around your heart. It’s human nature to try to protect that which has been injured. It’s a natural reaction to put up walls around the very areas of our hearts that are most sensitive and raw. Over the past years, through many circumstances, heart-breaking relationships, betrayal and more… the walls to my heart have grown much thicker. The deepest places of my heart are not exposed until complete trust and confidence has been gained by a person. Many things stay at a surface level without going much deeper. New situations, new encounters, new friendships… these almost always result with putting my guard up. Or there’s always the opposite where someone spills their guts without really knowing if the person is trustworthy. Now, I’m not saying it’s wrong to be transparent and allow yourself to be vulnerable. We have to ask for the Lord’s wisdom to carefully walk this. But my own response… well, what I’m saying is that my human-response to put up my guard is a fleshly form of trying to play God. Not good.
When I put up my guard, I am relying on my own form of protection. I am playing the role of protector. I am playing God, in a sense, but not leaning into His role as my protector. I am self relying [and we all know that never works out well]. His truth says:
Psalm 91:1-2: Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.”
Psalm 28:7: “The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him”.
Psalm 27:1: “The LORD is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life— of whom shall I be afraid?
The Lord is our protector. He is our shield. If we fear man, fear rejection, fear betrayal, fear loss, or fear of an kind… this is not from the Lord. He is not fear. He is real, raw, transparent and truth. Living in fear, which in essence is what we’re doing when we’re trying to guard ourselves so tightly, is absolutely crippling. It cripples us from breaking through to freedom. It keeps us from truly living out in genuineness.
What if we as believers lived our lives raw and real? It makes me stop and ask what would that look like in my own life? Would I be more willing to put myself out there in a new place? Would I be willing to reach others wherever they are at? Would I love fully as the Lord desires? What if we stripped away all the facade, pretense and guard, and truly put ourselves out there without trying to hide all of our flaws? What if we exposed ourselves as who we really are… humanity in desperate need of our Creator? What if we lived our lives walking in the truth and realizing our potential in Christ?
It’s uncomfortable, and let’s just be real! We like walking the road that makes us look good. But what if we stripped away all the paint… and stopped hiding behind a mask… and were ok with who we are: as God made us? What would be seen… without our guard?
