faking fine

So much truth in this.  Lament is a from of prayer - the deepest form of communication with God because you are trusting your Heavenly Father not only to hear your hurts and sorrows, but you are inviting Him to come cry with you.  The following is an excerpt from Esther Fleece's "No More Faking Fine."   http://www.estherfleece.com/

"Faking fine is a much easier way to live.  Answering that everything is fine is much more comfortable than having to be vulnerable.  Even getting lost in the act of service to others is easier than letting others into our pain.  But... I had to redefine this pain. I could no longer hide in my lament.  I had to make the choice not to lament alone...

What kind of Christian silences heartache?  What kind of Christian is unmoved by death?  Christians ought to be the first ones crying out that this world is not as it should be.  When we fake fine, we fake our way out of authentic relationship with God, others, and ourselves.  But lament, an honest expression of grief, is a prayer that God never silences nor wastes.  It is an authentic prayer that invites God to meet us right where we are, not where we pretend to be.  It is the language for the faithful, for we know the One who holds our pain.  And He never silences our cries. Even more than that, He cries with us. 

There will be seasons for each of us when we lament alone.  But isolation - for all of us, is never our destination.  Real strength is not pretending we are fine and keeping God and others at a safe distance.  Real strength is letting others into our brokenness.  Real strength is confessing we need God’s rescue over and over and over again.  For God loves us all too much to lament without rescue...

As I lamented, God showed me that I was not alone in my "unspoken broken" - and I don't think I can ever go back."