There is a secret ingredient that builds community faster than anything else: admitting our mistakes. But why in the world would anybody risk honesty? Because it is worth the risk!

There are four benefits of being honest about our errors, our feelings, our faults, and our fears.

• Emotional Healing

The Bible says in James 5:16, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” There is a difference between forgiveness and emotional healing. If you need forgiveness for something in your life, all you need to do is confess it to God. Emotional healing comes from telling God and somebody else.

• A Fresh Start

Proverbs 28:13 says, “Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.” One of the most helpful things you can do in your inner circle of family and friends is to help them forgive themselves. A lot of individuals need somebody to say, “If you have admitted it to God, then you are forgiven. Now, it is time for you to let it go.”

• God’s Power to Change

“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you” (James 4:10). How does this work? The Bible says that God resists the proud, but He gives grace to the humble. God’s grace is the power to change. When you get God’s grace, you can change the things you have always wanted to change in your life. But it only comes through humility, and humility comes through honesty.

• Deeper Fellowship

The Bible says in 1 John 1:7, “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” We think that if we are open about our fears, hang-ups, imperfections, and secret faults, people are going to think less of us. The opposite is true! Actually the more honest you are, the more people like you and want to be around you.

Some of the best lessons I have learned were from my failures and letdowns. Please understand that the mistakes of your past is your wisdom for the future. God wants to turn your hurt into healing. Then He wants to use you in the lives of other people. He is just waiting for you to surrender.

Is it sometimes harder to admit your mistakes to people within God’s family? Why do you think this is so?