Getting Honest with Yourself

 

Honesty is not always easy, especially with yourself. You can go years dodging issues, telling yourself all the many reasons why it’s better to not rock the boat. Pushing the pause button and being honest with yourself is not only courageous, but the first step to freeing yourself from the burdens you’ve been carrying. Burdens you’re not meant to bear.

I shake my head when I think of the heavy loads I’ve carried, unnecessarily.

• Afraid to look foolish, I avoided certain activities or responsibilities.
• Not sure how to let go and trust others, I kept my questions to myself.
• I didn’t want to bother my husband with parenting issues, so dealt with them alone.
• Embarrassed to admit when my choices were wrong, I just hoped they’d work themselves out.

Sound familiar?

But one truth I’ve discovered with age: the mountains are always higher and the obstacles harder in my mind than in reality. When I get honest and face what I dread head-on, a solution is found, a pathway appears, and fear loses its voice. And I ask myself again, What took me so long?

When you get honest and face what you dread, a solution can be found. #empowerednester Click To Tweet

 

 

Honesty begins by answering the right questions.

Several years back I hired a business coach and joined her monthly training group. I learned more about myself in the coming weeks than I knew I needed. Kelly taught us new ways to think and equipped us with fantastic tools.  The key to opening up uncharted dreams and overcoming hidden obstacles came, however, in answering very pointed and purposeful questions.

Questions poke at issues we avoid. Questions uncover opportunities we’re afraid to try. Meaningful questions reveal what’s working and what needs to change. Many times we don’t find the right answer because we don’t ask the right question.

Now, years later, I’m reading Good Leaders Ask Great Questions by John Maxwell. Again, I’m amazed by the influence of a great question and intrigued by the power of vulnerability. When I’m willing to look at specific topics full-face, when I lean into the truth and take a step forward, anything is possible.

#Honesty begins by answering the right questions. #emptynest #empowerednester Click To Tweet

 

Taking Honesty a Step Further

When you’re honest with yourself, you tap into a greater realm of influence than you may realize. God works within your honesty. He takes your vulnerability and questions, and He exchanges them for His wisdom. Your honesty opens the door for Him to speak truth and reveal eternal solutions.

Being honest aligns you to hear from your Creator. Desiring truth leads you to God, Himself.

O send out Your light and Your truth, let them lead me;
Let them bring me to Your holy hill
And to Your dwelling places.

Then I will go to the altar of God,
To God, my exceeding joy;
With the lyre I will praise You, O God, my God!”
Psalm 43:3-4, AMP

 

If you need a place to start…

• What do I value?
• What am I avoiding?
• What am I afraid of?
• What have I not finished, yet think about often?
• What relationships do I need to invest in?
• What do I need to walk away from?
• What do I need to take time to celebrate?

 

Please comment below with your thoughts or questions you’ve found to be valuable.