by Aanya Rose

Created on: November 25, 2010

How to be vulnerable

Vulnerability requires taking risks. It requires you take a leap of faith. When I was a child, my father taught me to show no emotion, which meant being invulnerable. That meant incapable of being hurt, wounded, damaged; it meant I had to be immune to attack and show no emotion. Can you imagine telling a 6-year old child that? Somehow I faked it at home, but managed to remain vulnerable where it counts, in my heart.

The hidden power of a vulnerable heart 

Some people see vulnerability as a weakness, when vulnerability actually allows a person to grow in strength and courage. That's because a vulnerable person has to be courageous to face their attackers and defend the meek. The vulnerable members of society are those that become confidants, counselors, and friends. Many people see individuals with vulnerable hearts as people who seem “too nice.” 

The consider someone with a vulnerable heart as the person that is sweet but weak. I should know. But, the person with the vulnerable heart is the person whose heart has the greatest capacity for love. It allows that person the space to hold someone when they need a friend, or when they need someone to talk to. The vulnerable heart provides a shoulder to lean on.

But, vulnerability has its pitfalls too. If you are the type of person that has an open heart, someone that people can open up to, you have to be aware that there are people that will try to take advantage of you. Sometimes people are vulnerable because they have lived a life of abuse, and because of this, they have compassion for people that are in pain, or people that suffer.

On the other hand, some people that suffer the same experiences build up walls, because they believe by building up walls they will prevent themselves from ever getting hurt again.

There are two sides to every coin. Being vulnerable means you have to have strong boundaries, so that people do not take all of your strength from you. You can’t intercede for everyone and save the world.

So where do you strike the balance between the two?

How to open up

First things first…you don’t have to have a hard life to have a big heart, or to allow people in. What you do have to have is a lot of LOVE in your heart. You have to love people. Love comes from God. If you want to get to know people, and to feel loved, then you have to pray. You have to ask God to help you learn to first

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