Being Real and Sharper

Since I've been home, I have spent about half of every week at home with my family and the other half in Sioux Falls. I love being able to spend time in Sioux Falls. Some of my favorite people live there; it's fun to see them. 

When I was in Sioux Falls earlier this week, I was able to have a couple of late night conversations with friends. They started out as superficial conversations, but before I knew it, I was rambling about all of the thoughts I haven't been able to articulate lately. And I cried. I had no idea the tears were needing to come out, but they sure did. I'm making small progress on my goal to face the hard stuff in life. 

With one friend, I was able to share about why I'm struggling with being home and how it's negatively affecting my desire to rest in God. I also word-vomited about all of the crap I saw in my heart while I was in Ghana. It was so good to get that word-vomit out. 

With another friend, I was able to talk about my family and the pressure I put on myself to please them. 

They responded the same way: they listened, they loved me, and they called me out. They told me which thoughts were absolute crap. 

At first, I was decently ticked. But then, I was so grateful. I was believing lies about who I am and what I'm meant to do. 

I am blessed with friends who are willing to speak truth into my life even when it hurts. They won't let me settle for less than the truth. They won't let me pretend like God is someone he's not. They won't let me put unfair expectations on myself. They're so great. 

As I was talking with one of these lovely women, she mentioned how awesome it is that we have the opportunity to sharpen one another like it says in Proverbs 17:27

As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend.

Sharpening iron isn't easy. It takes effort. It takes a little bit of beating. It's not pretty.

And when people sharpen us, it isn't easy. It can be a bit of an emotional beating. Sometimes it's not pretty. Sometimes it's super frustrating to take. But it's worth it. The end result is better. 

I'm thankful that my friends won't let me become a dull and useless thing that can't do what she was created to do. They won't let me settle for less than what God desires for me. They sharpen me until I'm ready to accept his truth, and I know they'll continue to do so when I need it. 

I want to sharpen others well too. I want to be like my friends. I want to be honest even when I know it'll frustrate the person who's struggling with the truth. I want to help others avoid settling for the dull crap. I want to be real and encourage others to be real too. I want us to all be sharp and be who we were created to be. I want us to sharpen one another. 

Thanks for sharpening me, friends. Keep up the good work!