TRANSPARENCY

It never ceases to amaze me how I can read one sentence, one word, see one sight, or hear one thought and my mind is off racing.  I am reading another historical fiction --based upon real events. The author embellishes fact with a free hand of dialogue and interpretations.  Without revealing what I am reading, here is the quote that began the wheels turning~

"If transparency is a sign of true love"

There was more to the sentence, but this one phrase caught my eye and challenged my ideas.

One must begin the process by deciding exactly what is transparency.  We need to go back to the root word- transparent and explore.   Mr. Webster tells us this~

Definition of transparent

1a(1): having the property of transmitting light without appreciable scattering so that bodies lying beyond are seen clearly : PELLUCID

(2): allowing the passage of a specified form of radiation (such as X-rays or ultraviolet light)

b: fine or sheer enough to be seen through : DIAPHANOUS

2a: free from pretense or deceit : FRANK

b: easily detected or seen through : OBVIOUS

c: readily understood

d: characterized by visibility or accessibility of information especially concerning business practices

As you would expect I am writing today on the second definition.  I have certainly been very forth coming on this blog, but there is a part of me that I have not revealed.  For many reasons, there are deeply hidden secrets, I have not revealed to anyone.  I would dare to say most of us have secrets we are not ready to share.  Why?  Why would there be anything about ourselves that we would not share with anyone?  Fear drives us from sharing these deep secrets.

We fear we will not be liked, we might shock someone, the world will turn away and reject us, and on and on.  We have talked before about the power of secrets in our lives.  There is no denying the hold they can have over us.  The question becomes, if we love someone deeply enough--completely enough--are we transparent?  Do we reveal all?  Is there anyone who knows it all about you?  I can only answer for myself, but for me--No--there has never been anyone who has known it all.  My insecurities drive my lack of trust in revealing it all.  It has not gone well, in the past, when I have opened up Pandora's Box of secrets and revealed parts of the inner most me.  Past experience drives today's tightly held truths from being brought out in the open.  Man and his feet of clay create a deep distrust of our fellow man.  We don't trust him to keep our secrets, to not judge us when we reveal our secrets, and to not turn from us when he knows the truth about us.  Fear of being ostracized is a powerful force and can shape who we are and how we act, without us even realizing it.  We need relationships.

BUT GOD, we forget or ignore the fact that God knows it all.  NOTHING is hidden from Him.  AND YET, He still loves us, He is faithful to us, He not only does not reject us, but embraces us.  But God--we are transparent in His sight and He really understands us, and there is no deceit or pretense with Him---AND HE STILL LOVES US!  So thankful!

God would surely have known it, for he knows the secrets of every heart.

Psalm 44:21