Recently, I was voxing my best friend about some struggles our family is having with someone aging. A few days later, she told me about a client who just came to their office. The husband was struggling with the same thing we were experiencing. And when she shared our experiences with him, he looked relieved. As she commented, “it’s just nice to know you’re not the only one going through it.”
This has been the refrain in my life over and over.
My best friend group telling each other, don’t apologize for sharing, that’s what we do, we share our stories and it helps. It serves a purpose.
I was on the phone with an old friend this weekend who was suffering. She commented through tears, thank you so much for sharing your story (cancer) because it’s helping so many women.
Lisa Jo Baker recently posted, “Joy is multiplied when it’s shared.” But suffering, when shared, divides the pain. Shares it. Breaks it up. We shouldn’t be compelled to only share the joy. The pretty. The good. Others know they’re not in it alone when we share the hard too.
Ann Voskamp recently released a blog post sharing some of the gut punch grief she’s experiencing after her father died. She told of a tree which had been cut down and yet showed signs of life. She writes, “What the ecologist discovered was that the tree stump’s roots have been grafted together with roots from other trees, something that is known to happen when trees sense they can share resources with the trees around them. That’s the miracle: Cut down lives can revive when we share our lives.”
By you sharing what you’ve been through, you’ll help the next person going through it after you.
I recently heard a pastor share one of my favorite verses in preaching this same message: And they overcame by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony. (Rev. 12:11)
The word of their testimony. That’s just someone sharing their story. It has the power to help others overcome.
We must share our stories.
The broken places. Busted and patched up chapters. Threadbare souls.
Because it doesn’t just lighten the load for the sharer, it lets those in the same circumstances know they aren’t alone.
Marriage is hard for everyone. Parenting can be a kick in the face. Infertility. Alzheimer’s. Cancer. Finances. Job loss. Broken friendship.
That is all a tapestry of my own personal story.
But just a piece.
It’s woven in there with threads of gold and sunlight too.
Triplets. Promotions. Marriage. Satisfaction. Travel. Sunsets. Adventure. Good wine. Best pals. Swimming pool cannonballs. Leadership. Rollercoasters. Graduation. Belly laughs.
Go tell your story. And I’ll keep sharing mine.