"Someone gets wonderfully converted and we all rejoice, then promptly saddle them with spiritual disciplines to help them "grow." They’re not Christians two weeks before they feel like worse failures than they ever did as an unbeliever. Maybe they were dealing crack before conversion, but at least they didn’t feel hypocritical about it.
A great deal of my depression and a sense of loneliness comes from the fear of being rejected and criticized by others after they know who I truly am. So I will put up a mask and pretend things are ok when they are not.
Maybe there is wisdom in not revealing all the nitty gritty details of life to others, because they may not be able to handle it, but with God it's different. He bids us to come just as we are. And that's a great relief.
