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Into a darkness unknown: why “being vulnerable” is not enough
“But who can discern their own errors? Forgive my hidden faults…”
-Psalm 19:12
“I said that I thought most of us didn’t know how truly good or truly bad we were, and most of us would never be sufficiently tested to find out.”
-Rachel Cusk, Outline
Vulnerability has become my generation’s greatest virtue. To be able to articulate your own weaknesses, in an appropriate but compelling way, is seen as a necessary character attribute for spiritual growth. As a leader, I am keenly aware of what is expected of me whenever I speak, write, or share in any setting: be vulnerable. Share your struggles. Tell us about how you’ve been hurt, how you’ve suffered, how you’ve experienced something difficult. Vulnerability — the sharing of personal information that exposes you and puts hidden things (especially inadequacies) out in the open — has become a requirement for Christian life and leadership today.
This, for the most part, is a truly wonderful thing. I am a better leader not when I perform a kind of deceitful perfection, but when I lead out of an honest assessment of my weaknesses. Studies and writing performed by people much smarter than me or you have proven this.
