I’m embarrassed to say it, but I’m hungover. With vulnerability that is. Yep, I have a vulnerability hangover that may never end.

It began the day Chris McCluskey asked me to record my personal story for the Professional Christian Coaching Today podcast, and it returned as soon as those episodes aired.

The truth is I don’t like talking about myself. Revealing the hidden passageways of my heart. Baring my soul for all the world to see. It reminds me of that dream I have of running through my fifth-grade school hallways wearing only my underwear. The one where I try to crawl into my locker to hide only to discover I’ve forgotten the combination once again.

That dream makes me cry. So did recording the podcast. And when my story went public, I cried again.

Vulnerability is Hard
Why, oh why, is sharing authentically, vulnerably, from the heart so hard?

Somehow sharing the real me causes the voices in my head to begin to taunt and shout, “Why would anyone care? People are going to laugh. Why are you making life all about you?”

Then up from the depths bubble feelings of fear, vulnerability, and shame.

Run and Hide
Being the confident adult that I am, I vowed to stay off Social Media (and out of fifth-grade school hallways) until everyone forgot my name.

Snuggling deep into my safety zone, I hid from the world and picked up my Bible instead.

And God says…
No hiding there. Here is what God had to say.

“You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven.”
Matthew 5:14-16 (The Message)

It seems that God thinks that living my imperfect life openly allows other to see Him. That my covered sin points to His forgiveness, my mistakes highlight His redemption, and His joy shines most brightly through my pain.

And deep inside, I know He’s right.

Polly Perfect may look good, but she’s not real. She doesn’t inspire us, she tires us. She doesn’t make us want to level up, but give up. Her phantom facade taunts us with standards not even she can attain.

But Authentic Amy, living above brokenness, applying God’s principles to life’s pain, attracts us like moths to a flame.

This is What I Did
Convicted, I laid aside my plastic pride, stared the computer screen straight in the eye, and posted the interview on Facebook for all the world to see.

My life may be messy, but I really do want the world to know that God has been good to me.

Here’s the Thing…
We’re life coaches, you and I. Coaches. Of. Life. Real life. Life that is painful. Hard. Twisted, yet God-filled every step of the way. And that’s what the world yearns to see.

Of course, we need to be walking the talk. Rising above. Looking to Him. We’re the flesh and blood example of how the principles we’re espousing work out in daily life.

But they also want us, need us, to confess the tough times, so they can see how Christians learn, trust, grow, and get up each time they fall.

Life is painful, but God is here. And through our transparency, He is seen.

How About You?
Has God been whispering that you’re to share part of your story? To unlock your heart vault to let others in? To risk being real so others don’t feel completely alone?

May I encourage you today to take the risk? Come out of your locker, and be brave. Hearts will be touched. Hurts will be healed. And you’ll be the sought-after coach in your class.

If you’d like to hear the story of how God is working in my life, my coaching, and my marketing, you can find those two podcast episodes here:
Journey to Joy: Kim Avery’s Story, Part 1
Facing Your Marketing Fears: Kim Avery’s Story, Part 2