Embracing your weird, the Jesus way

Written By Rachel Wahba-Dunkley

If you're new here, then hello! I'm Rachel and I'm a big fan of authenticity and vulnerability. I believe that a lot of healing, holiness, and wholeness comes from removing the lies and pressures of the world, taking on the true ways of Jesus, and being real with God, ourselves, and the people around us. And sometimes that means the church too because parts of her be trippin.🫢

I do weird things like farting freely when going outside for a walk or refusing to wear a bra for a quick grocery store run. And recently, I was reminded of two things: 1: to embrace my weird and 2: that following Christ is kinda wild. 

I went to a conference recently in the role of supportive and cheerleader-spouse to support my husband who was speaking. But girl lemme tell you, the conference ended up wrecking me in a powerful way. It was one of the few times I've been in a space where people let their true selves been seen and not fall into the pressures of uniformity, conformity, or looking “good" for others.

The power of authenticity

 And this power of authenticity is one reason why I created The Soft Place - we need places where we can stop pretending that everything's alright or that our faith is on fire everyday or that we can just keep working our way through injustices.

The Soft Place, and much of my wellness business, is meant to be weird because it's meant to be freeing for people and guess what y'all? We weird. And we're supposed to be.

I remember when I decided to become a Christian, I felt like I was losing my mind. According to the DSM, a key part of my graduate school training, following Christ felt like I had delusional disorder. I was living in this world but my sense of values and standards for living life weren't based on things in this world. It was based on a brown man who died and rose again from death to save our souls.

That is weird.

This is one reason why I can understand how people don't want to be a Christian.

Believing that someone died and came back to life is wild.

And that same person gives us eternal life, which is also wild.

And God loves us even when we're trippin, is wild.

And how instead of fighting for power in this violent, greedy world, we're told to bring shalom to all of God's creation which includes the people who hurt us. That is wild.

 Following God is wild and weird, and I'm here for it.

 So my encouragement to you is to embrace your weird and wildness of the gospel. Allow your true self to be seen by God. Allow yourself to be vulnerable with your community and ask for real help. Allow yourself to be human. Fart without being embarrassed! Go bra-less to the grocery store! Make a mistake and say sorry! Laugh at yourself when you trip on the sidewalk!

Be human, my friend.

 My hope is that you say yes to God's invitation to be free in Him - farts and laughs and tears and all. And may you see how God delights in your weirdness, how He supports you in healing, and how His hugs of comfort are protective, deep, and nourishing to your soul. 💜

 

Need more support? Lemme help you sis:

  • The Soft Place where you can journal with God without the pressure to be perfect

  • Righteous Rage Room where you can vent without getting all the spiritual bypassing comments

Rachel Wahba-Dunkley
Next

To the woman who’s been dismissed, discarded, or discredited