In a previous post entitled Armor On, we address the relevant issue that life will more than likely include a variety of personal and professional struggles, and in order to wrestle with and overcome these struggles, we might consider following the guidance outlined in Ephesians 6 and put on the armor of God. But what if there is another side to the fight to a flourishing life which requires us to take the Armor Off?

Perhaps there are times in this life when God is calling us to lay down the sword, take the Armor Off, and step into a willingness to be vulnerable? One of the authors I enjoy reading and is often used as a reference in the research on thriving, is Brene Brown. This self-pronounced “researcher-storyteller” offers some challenging insights to many concerns encountered during the pilgrimage to a flourishing life, but in Rising Strong, Brown focuses on the characteristic of courage which she explains may actually develop through vulnerability. Outlining the Rising Strong process, Brown asks the essential question, “What are the consequences of putting down the weapons and taking off the armor?”

Sharing previously Brown’s concept of rumbling with truth in the blog post Courageous Conversations, I find her insights in how one can grow both personally and professionally through this rumbling process to be relevant here as we discuss taking the Armor Off. This choice is not often a simple one and may require us to rumble a bit to discern when it’s best to take the Armor Off. Explaining how throughout life we discover coping mechanisms that allow us to persevere through struggles, Brown clarifies how as children “we found ways to protect ourselves from vulnerability, from being hurt, diminished, and disappointed. We put on armor; we used our thoughts, emotions, and behaviors as weapons…Now as adults, we realize that to live with courage, purpose, and connection-to be the [flourishing] people we long to be-we must again be vulnerable. The course to be vulnerable means taking off the armor we use to protect ourselves, putting down the weapons that we use to keep people at a distance, showing up, and letting ourselves be seen.”

Rather than choosing self-protection as we did as a child, could God be requesting that the time has come to take the Armor Off and, using discretion, allow ourselves to be embraced in community, whether that appears in the form of a posse, a family, mentors, through fifth floor relationships or whatever terminology suits you best? Creating relational equity requires us to remove the armor, place weapons aside, and engage deeply with others while developing the habits that lead to a flourishing life. With the Armor Off, we open up opportunities to flip Brown’s “choosing certainty over curiosity, armor over vulnerability, and knowing over learning,” to embracing curiosity, vulnerability, and learning.

Have you experienced times when it was necessary to take the Armor Off and be vulnerable to allow yourself, or someone you know, to flourish? Please feel free to share in the comments below.

Reference:

Brown, B. (2017). Rising strong: How the ability to reset transforms the way we live, love, parent, and lead. Random House.