Lance Wallnau

Guard Vulnerability

PROPHETIC WATCH WORD – Guard Vulnerability
Don't let other people injure your greatest asset!
Check this out – over 16 Million people have watched this TED talk.
Why? The subject is: THE POWER OF VULNERABILITY
(Lance – Anyone who wants to do coaching will need to work some of these ideas out. These ideas are the cutting edge in leadership studies in our secular counterparts.)
Here is part of the transcript…
“The problem is–and I learned this from the research–that you cannot selectively numb emotion. You can't say, here's the bad stuff. Here's vulnerability, here's grief, here's shame, here's fear, here's disappointment. I don't want to feel these. I'm going to have a couple of beers and a banana nut muffin. (Laughter) I don't want to feel these… You can't numb those hard feelings without numbing the other affects, our emotions. You cannot selectively numb.
(Lance – wow, wow. When we selectively shut down on connecting with certain emotions we numb out on the good ones also. So how does this work for a Christian who is called to “put off” certain emotions and “put on” others? I guess thats the whole field of self control and emotional intelligence, huh?”)
So when we numb those, we numb joy, we numb gratitude, we numb happiness. And then we are miserable, and we are looking for purpose and meaning, and then we feel vulnerable, so then we have a couple of beers and a banana nut muffin. And it becomes this dangerous cycle.
So to fully experience positive emotions, we have to be open to our negative emotions. We have to RESIST THE URGE TO NUMB OURSELVES and cultivate the ability to be vulnerable without feeling compelled to protect ourselves. We have to develop a sense of comfort with our discomfort.
(Lance – so in this sense we understand that Jesus displayed a fully developed emotional life! He got angry, he rejoiced, he wept. In comparison, I think a lot of us are emotional feeling stuffers because we think the only expression we should have is detachment and love.)
These concepts are of critical importance to leaders, who must not only manage their own emotions, but who also have a significant impact on the emotions of everyone around them (for better and for worse).
Emotions are literally contagious–we sense them in others, pick them up and pass them on–and we're even more sensitive to the emotions of leaders and others we view as having high status…”
(Lance – watch the talk. TED talks are short and brilliant.

1 thought on “Guard Vulnerability”

  1. On the point of developing some sort or comfort within our discomfort there is an Ignatius prayer which ends “Give Our Lord the benefit of believing that his hand is leading you, and accept the anxiety of feeling yourself in suspense and incomplete.” It’s been helpful. Peace

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