AM: All this harassment I’m getting will make me think twice before doing another talk. 

Betty: Yeah, but the Lord is calling you to move on into greater generosity in the gift of yourself to others. Don’t you think? He never promised us it would be easy. At least I never got a promise like that. You’re right though. I don’t think a lot of people realize how much pain giving a real spirit-led talk presents to the people who say “yes” to giving it. 

AM: Staying behind the sidelines is comfy. So, I won’t be throwing myself out there. If God calls me, I’ll do another talk. But otherwise I’ll just hang tight.

Betty: Wait. You have to really decide to follow Jesus to give yourself to a ministry like that.

AM: Yeah. I have the  gift of speaking, but the blood and sweat that goes into it is a whole other story.

Betty: Yeah, when your mom, dad, and I we’re working together, God did an awful lot of healing in us as we tried to give those talks. But we really suffered those talks. I think that was part of the transformation of who X was that was taking place.

AM: I don’t know why I picked the title “to be authentic.“

Betty: Well, I think because Jesus wanted you to. I can’t think of a better reason for doing something like that. 

AM: Well, it seems like being authentic is the secret to the spiritual life. 

Betty: Oh, yeah. Because the Lord cannot work with a lie. He’s Eternal Truth. So, if we’re gonna draw close to Him, we’ve got to choose to be real. I don’t think I’ve ever been as real as God wants me to be, but I try to be as open as I can.

AM: It is refreshing when someone’s authentic.

Betty: It enables you to trust to allow God to act in your life. A lot of people can smell phoniness, especially teenagers. I think it’s because they’re so tempted themselves to be somebody they’re not. So, in some parts of them, they are experts at sniffing out phoniness They’re tempted so much to put on the personality of the teen they think that’s popular. And then they turn out really hating phoniness, because they’re being tempted to be phony themselves. I’m hearing back again that famous phrase, “Out of the depths, I cry unto thee. Oh Lord, hear my prayer.” It’s almost like it’s your theme right now. I’m thinking, “Is that a part of you that I’m hearing crying out to get out of this phony place?” It might be God calling you to leave the phony behind.

If you struggle with being authentic, get into the humble, contrite heart and pray to get out of the phony place.