I would say it’s pretty much common sense that if you want to solve a problem, you have to have all the pieces on the table. If you don’t have all the pieces on the table, there is vital information for solving the problem that you have intentionally kept out of your field of view. Imagine trying to solve a jigsaw puzzle without all the pieces on the table. Wouldn’t make much sense would it?

That being said, how many of us exclude ourselves from the growth that God has for us by trying to pretend that we’re okay all of the time? We’re so obsessed with convincing ourselves and others that everything is fine when it is not that we end up not moving forward. We need to learn how to say, “I’m not okay.”

Are you afraid? Are you insecure? Are you in some form of pain? Are you jealous? Are you burnt out? You have to begin to acknowledge this stuff to yourself and others. If you do, you may actually have a shot at moving forward and growing. We would also probably find ourselves liberating others because they would begin to realize that they are not alone in their personal struggles. We do ourselves and others no favors when we pretend we’re fine when we’re not. We end up suffering alone and perpetuating the mass deception that everything is fine all the time.

What if we turned the tide? What if, one by one, we actually started a domino effect where people began acknowledging that life is hard. That things don’t always work out the way they’re supposed to. That there’s pain inside that won’t seem to go away. The goal is not that we would all become a fatalistic and pessimistic depressed group but that we would actually be able to move forward.

You can’t solve a problem until you acknowledge there is a problem. You can’t solve a jigsaw puzzle with half the pieces left in the box. We have to be able to say, “I’m not okay.” The goal is not that we would stay there but that we would acknowledge what is not right so that it can be fixed. Is it possible that God has tons of healing for us but that we exclude ourselves from it by living under the delusion that everything is fine all the time? I think maybe so.

Would love to hear your thoughts.