Ya know, truth ain’t always pretty. I think its always good but not always pleasant.
And speaking the right truth at the wrong time, well that’s like showing up at a work out class in a ball gown. “Okay I see you boo, but that’s not gonna work in here.”
In college, during a particularly rough season that for lack of a more accurate term we’ll call a “break up,” I had a friend hit me with some hard truth. “LeAnn, you don’t get this but your feelings affect everyone around you and its making things pretty difficult for all of us.” Imagine that coming from a red faced, angry man on the verge of yelling at you.
Didn’t go over too well. He was right. But he did not deliver that statement in love, and I was not ready to receive a statement like that.
Fast forward 2ish years to the world race when one of my leaders told me, “LeAnn, you have so much influence that you’re not aware of. When you enter a room, the atmosphere shifts because of what you bring into it. There is power in that. The Holy Spirit can move through you strongly, but you must learn to be aware of what you bring and steward it wisely.”
Both of those people were getting at the same thing. I have a lot of natural influence and the ability to shift atmospheres. The second time that was delivered to me it was spoken in love and I was able to receive it.
I’ve had a natural disposition for discernment for most of my life. I can often see what’s going on underneath the appearance of a situation, and I can often see tendencies and struggles in other people that they themselves have little to no awareness of. This leads me to see the truth through the fog, and lately, God has been asking me to boldly speak out the truth that I see. Its been a little scary, because as previously stated, the truth ain’t always pretty. It ruffles feathers. It rubs up against our rough edges.
For a lot of my life I’ve struggled with the fear of man. There are many instances in my past in which I could have spoken truth but didn’t for fear of losing friendship or affection.
God is calling me out of that fear.
