Today I had a truly amazing experience with my church family. Testimonies were spontaneously shared, burdens and struggles were made known, and before my very eyes, I watched spirits knit together in a blanket of comfort and strength.

I believe, at times, there is a sense within the Christian community that we are supposed to keep our hardships under the radar. We put on our Sunday church face, and do our best to keep it all together for the length of time amongst our brothers and sisters in the Gospel. I cannot begin to express how far off the mark it is to harbor that way of thinking.

It was remarkable to watch so much love pour out in response to the admissions of pain and fear and heartache. We are told that where two or more are gathered in His name, there will He be also. Rarely have I experienced that more tangibly than I did today. Our pastor talked about the words of Jesus in Matthew 11, and what an amazing invitation that is for all of us.

““Come to Me, all who are weary and heavily burdened [by religious rituals that provide no peace], and I will give you rest [refreshing your souls with salvation]. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me [following Me as My disciple], for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST (renewal, blessed quiet) FOR YOUR SOULS. For My yoke is easy [to bear] and My burden is light.””

MATTHEW‬ ‭11:28-30‬ ‭AMP‬‬

How easy it is for us to feel as though we are supposed to figure things out for ourselves. As I was listening to the service today, I got an image in my mind of life as a giant Golden Corral. At one register stood Jesus Christ, openly inviting anyone and everyone to pass through on His dime and eat for free as often as they want. At the other register, a cashier there to accept payment from all who choose to not go through on the side of Jesus. Some would choose to pay for their own meal because they don’t feel comfortable accepting charity. Some wouldn’t be able to accept that what Jesus was offering was truly free, so they’d choose to pay their own way. The problem is that eventually, they’d run out of money, and in their pride, would refuse to choose to accept the free food being offered by the Savior.

The food being offered is unconditional love and forgiveness. The word of God can feed the spirit in endless ways. I can read the same scripture every day for a month, and it will continue to shift in meaning according to my needs at the time. The word is solid and unchanging, but as I look at it from different perspectives, I see different insights and an ever growing beauty. Have you ever looked at a portrait and felt as though, no matter where you stand, it appears as though the eyes of the subject(s) remain focused on you? In my opinion, that is how it is with the Bible. No matter the angle at which I approach the word, it will seem as though God is speaking directly into my life.

Don’t be afraid to open your hearts and share your struggles. That is how God intended things to be. He often uses other people to do His work in our lives. If we don’t allow other people in, we are only making things harder for ourselves, in the end.