The house of my soul is too small for you to enter: make it more spacious by your coming. It lies in ruins: rebuild it. Some things that are to be found there which will offend your gaze; I confess this to be so and know it well. But who will clean my house? To whom but yourself can I cry, ‘Cleanse me of my hidden sins, O Lord, and for those incurred through otheres pardon your servant?’ I believe, and so I will speak You know everything Lord. Have i not laid my own transgressions bare before you to my own condemnation, my God, and have you not forgiven the wickedness of my heart? I do not argue my case againse you, for you are truth itself; nor do I wishto deceive myself, lest my iniquity be caught in its own lies. No, I do not argue the case with you, because, if you, Lord, keep the score of our iniquities, then who, Lord, could bear it?
– St. Augustine The Confessions
Something I totally admire about Augustine’s Confessions is his raw honesty. In this work, he just opens his heart and soul and let’s God really know how he feels. It seems like he lets go alot of his pride. This is how I want to interact with God and others. There is something to me that is totally freeing about being able to just lay yourself out there and be real. Of course, there is a time and place for it…but i think in our closest relationships, we could all use a little bit more of Augustine-like confession and openness.
Let’s be honest. We’ve all got struggles, hurts, pains, hopes, fears and dreams. We need to share them with God and others more often than we do.