Tullian Tchividjian is Billy Graham’s grandson and a well-known pastor who loves to preach about God’s unlimited grace. In 2015 he stepped down after he and his wife had separate affairs.

As you might expect, the news shared that the popular pastor fell from grace. Some believers were disappointed; others were smug. People who don’t believe in Jesus pointed to yet another example of believers’ hypocrisy. 

A month later Tchividjian shared a public message where he admitted he wanted to keep hiding, but he knew that if he tried to hide his shame and fear and anger and sadness, then he wasn’t practicing what he preached. He said that it’s destructive not to practice what you preach. 

Being honest with our failings isn’t easy. It’s easy to say that Jesus forgives sins, but we aren’t always honest about what those sins are. If we deny our weaknesses, we miss the opportunity to share that anything good we do is actually the power of Christ working in us. If we don’t share our hurts, others aren’t able to follow God’s command to carry one another’s burdens. So, like Paul, we “boast all the more gladly about [our] weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on [us]” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Admittedly, this is messy and hard. However, if you hide and don’t give God the glory when you’re broken, other broken people won’t know that thanks to Jesus, the Father is ready to run and welcome them home too.