vulnerable bunkers

so for all you war buffs out there, tell me where the weakest part of a bunker is. anyone? well most people would say the entrance/doorway or maybe even the loopholes from which they fire the guns. would it go against your understanding if i said it was neither? how about if i said the weakness of the pillbox was not anything in its structure or makeup.

confused? good.

the weakness of the bunker, every time is what lies inside the bunker.

the occupant.

before bunker-busting bombs appeared, the only way to take a bunker was to either outflank it, draw out those in the bunker, or make a successful surprise attack. either way, most of the time it was not the bunker that failed, it was the occupants of the bunker that does.

it is amazing how people can resemble bunkers. we find a prominent, cautious line where we long for no one to cross and set up shop. we camouflage it so well and with every year of occupancy, we thicken the walls in order to make it infallible. for some of us, we even have the landscape made out so perfectly, the enemy (or in this case other people) would never know it is even there.

well if that is the case, call me commander-in-chief harwood.

i spent the weekend with some amazing people. people who truly care and feel pain for others. we went there together to gain focus, gain vision, but mostly from my perspective, to meet, hang out, and gain new friends. i don't think any of us had a clue what was going to happen.

we ended up sharing more than any of us were prepared for. we are doing something called post secret, where by the objective, you mail in some secret that you carry with you, anonymously, in a small effort to heal and/or grow from it. well for ours, we decided to share together.

i still find myself sitting in that brown leather chair in shock, half from what was being shared around me, the other half not believing what i was about to say, something i have never told anyone, ever.

we failed our bunkers.

we walked out, stared at each other outside of our well fortified positions, vulnerable, weak, small, powerless, but most of all, human. it was an amazing site for my eyes. when you are used to looking at the world through a little slot, it is amazing what beauty you see for the the first time when you step outside your concrete shelter, almost like you seeing life for the first time.

i encourage you to find someone who you confide in and do not be ashamed of your past or what has shaped you to this point in your life, embrace it, because it is you. not because you deserved it, nor because it is your fault, but because it is your story. God cares for your entirety; mistakes, pains, joys, highs, lows, tears, smiles and even your baggage. it is so freeing and gives you the opportunity for God to fill the void you've been hiding the whole time.

helpful materials:
"name" nooma 18 by rob bell (video 1, video 2); Jacob vs. God; "Dangerous Prayer: Being Vulnerable to God"