Social worker and author Brene Brown says, “Vulnerability is the core of shame and fear and our struggle for worthiness, but it appears that it is also the birthplace of joy, of creativity, of belonging, of love.” We are made for relationships. Deep down, the DNA of our souls is for community. But there may be no more difficult thing in life than our relationships. What we do we do with this catch-22? If we’re to do life well, if we’re to pursue God with all our heart, we can’t do it alone. We do it together. If you’re baking a loaf a bread, there are two essential ingredients—flour and water. If we’re doing life together, there are two essential ingredients—vulnerability and availability. To be vulnerable and available to the people God puts around us—these are costly things. They’re hard. But as Brene Brown suggests, they are the very things they bring us the deepest satisfaction in life. We do life together.
