What is up y’all!! Man it has been a crazy week for me so far. Finals week is upon us, for my fellow students, and to keep it a stack, it is a stressful time. I think to “keep it a stack” means to be honest and to not be afraid to tell people, especially the people closest to you, what really is going on in life. I know it is hard, but the real life conversations will help us so much in our lives because it is with those times of honesty, that we grow.
We have all heard the statement that “honesty is the best policy.” I remember my parents telling me growing up that it is better to be honest and receive the consequences, than to keep digging a hole of dishonesty and ruin their trust. To be honest y’all, it is difficult to be flat out real with people, because it is so easy to be afraid of what others will think. This fear is very prevalent. The real reward for honesty, though, is gaining the trust of people, and that relationships may grow deeper and your honesty will help others to be transparent as well. We see in Scripture that we should, “Do unto others as you would have them do to you”(Luke 6:31). This is a perfect example of a simple yet powerful statement. If you want someone to be real with you, then you need to be real with them.
1 John 3:18 tells us, “Let us not love with our words, but with actions and in truth.” This is strong too because there comes points and times in our lives, that keeping it a stack shows people that we can trust them, and ultimately, that we are walking in love because we are leading with actions of trust. A prime example, is in romantic relationships. In order to have a successful relationship, both people should keep it 100 with each other, by giving honest answers and by being vulnerable with each other…that trust may delve deep into the foundations. Everyone is comfortable with shallow relationships at times, but deep down, we crave intimacy and community. We all desire to be trusted with the hard things that life can bring us.
I will say, that I am so grateful for my close friendships. Pretty much every day, we have times where we have real conversations about our fears, desires, and plans of action. This is the time where we keep it a stack with each other, so that we can learn more about each other and to grow closer in our walk as friends. This attribute is so vital and necessary to have an effective life. We need not to live by fear of opinions, but rather dare to open up and be honest with those we can do life with. Keeping it a stack brings us closer to the Father because He craves us to be real and vulnerable with Him. So I challenge us all: Find people to have those tough conversations with, but even more so, have that time with God, uninterrupted and quiet, where we can keep it real with Him and for Him to guide us out of that time and heart set.
Much Love,
Ryan W.
