Getting Real with Lisa Wingate

Lisa Wingate is one of my favorite authors, and also one of the sweetest women I know. She's not only a fabulously talented writer, but her heart for people and the Lord shines through in a beautiful, real way. 

When I asked Lisa what getting real meant for her today, here's what she said:

What does get real mean to me?

That's a tough question. Get real is one of those phrases we throw around so much it has lost its meaning.   So, what would it take to sort the words out and give them meaning again?  It's interesting to think about.

"Get" implies the attainment of something you don't already have. It signifies something that's going to happen, and something that will require movement or effort. "Real" implies a state of authenticity, where something is neither dressed up, nor disguised, nor altered from its original God-given state in any way.

So, for me, I think get real is perhaps a process requiring continual movement, effort, and perhaps continual reflection and analysis as to what real means for each of us. Getting real involves stripping away the disguises, and the masks, and the parts of our God-given selves we sometimes keep hidden because we are afraid people won't like those parts or won't approve. 

It's hard to get real in a culture where we're constantly sold unreal images of perfection.  Unreality is all around us -- it's on TV, it's in the magazines, it's on the Internet.  We're bombarded with it.  Unreality looks pretty good.  It's beautiful, it's thin, it's dressed in great clothes, it drives awesome cars.  Who wouldn't want to opt for that over getting real?

The problem is that all that unreality is an illusion.  It's human-made, and like many things human-made, it's not good for us.  All that sparkly unreality convinces us that real isn't good enough, because real isn't perfect.  But if God created the people we really are, then how can real be anything but perfect?  God doesn't make mistakes, right?

It's mind-bending to contemplate.  Ultimately, reality is a vulnerable state of being. It starts with being honest with yourself, and then with the world. It is a high aspiration, but a worthy one. Perhaps the worthiest aspiration of all, to finally become what we were created to be by the God who stitched us together thread by thread before we even knew ourselves.

Here's to getting real.  May we each find the path and have the courage to walk it.

Here are a few links to find me on social media of various types where some days reality is even stranger than fiction :-)

Website:  www.Lisawingate.com

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Lisa-Wingate-Readers-Circle/132187520154779?fref=ts

Pinterest:  http://pinterest.com/lisawingatebook/

Thanks Lisa, for sharing your heart with us today! So powerful.