Lessons from a Conference: God’s Grace in Transparency
Yesterday my family packed up and drove to Atlanta so I could speak at the Impact Movement Conference. I was tasked with sharing with the women about sexual temptation, impurity, lust and how to fight it all to the glory of God. The conference coordinator named my talk “Moral Fitness” which was fitting as I was going to be addressing how we exercise self-control over our minds and bodies. As these things typically go, I am now leaving more aware of God’s grace and power than when I arrived.
Two years ago I would never have imagined jumping up on a stage and sharing intimate details about my past. I would have been too ashamed and fearful of being judged. This, I have learned, is pride and the fear of man. Over the past year the Lord has been rooting out my self-awareness and focus and reminding me that as I share my weaknesses (past and present) I am shining light on His grace in my life. God has forgiven me and cleansed me. It is a miracle of God’s grace that I can proclaim His work in my life. And so now, it’s an honor to get to shout it out loud—His grace is sufficient in me and His power is made perfect in my weakness.
This weekend I got to see firsthand the power of transparency. God’s word says that if we confess our sin He is faithful and just to forgive us and purify us (1 John 1:9). I told the ladies the truth about sexual sin. There are great consequences. God’s word is filled with warnings about impurity. We’ve seen ministries fall and families torn apart. And then we see that Jesus says to the woman caught in adultery that she is forgiven of her sin and to “go and sin no more” (John 8: 2-11).
So what happened at this meeting? Women confessed and asked for forgiveness. Women sought advice from other women about improper relationships. I saw one woman counseling another using Elyse Fitzpatrick’s book Counsel from the Cross. Young ladies came up to me asking for prayer. There was a transparency in the room that I didn’t expect from a few hundred women. And what is greater—Jesus’ grace was magnified and proclaimed.
My prayer for them (and for all of us) is that it wouldn’t end there. I encouraged them to go to their pastors and local churches and share and receive encouragement and help and to be the encouragement and help for others. Jesus died for our junk, He can handle it. We don’t have to hide and pretend. And it is right there, at our lowest, that we see His beauty and grace and we begin to understand that He has made us beautiful by His blood if we would only receive this free gift.
I love the body of Christ. I love the Church and what God is doing. God is moving in our midst and beyond.
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