Latest / YOUR AVERAGE DELTON / Episode 18: Part 3: Letting People in is Never a Mistake
Transcript
- DELTON DEAL: Hey guys, this is the final episode of the three-part episode. Letting people in is never a mistake. Keeping your heart open. That's the place we want to talk about. So this is the place that we discuss real life for loss and the things we carry that most people never see. No filters, no pretending, just truth. So before we wrap up today, I want to leave you with one final thought. If you've ever been hurt, I hope you know something. Your story isn't over because someone walked away. Your capacity to love wasn't buried the day someone disappointed you. Your ability to trust wasn't permanently broken because someone mishandled your heart. You are still capable of building meaningful relationships. You're still capable of finding people who will value your honesty, your loyalty, your kindness, and your time. So don't let One chapter convince you it was your whole book. I think one of the greatest acts of courage isn't climbing a mountain or standing in front of a crowd. It's choosing to remain soft in a world that keeps giving you reasons to become hard. It's deciding that disappointment won't define you, that betrayal won't become your personality, at heartbreak won't become your identity. Because here's the truth: pain has a voice. It whispers things that sound convincing. Don't trust again. Don't get attached. You'll only get hurt. People always leave. if you listen long enough, those whispers begin to sound like wisdom. But they aren't. They're fear. Fear is loud after you've been wounded. fear has never been a reliable guide for building a meaningful life. Hope is. Hope doesn't promise that every relationship will last. Hope doesn't promise you'll never cry again. Hope doesn't promise people will never disappoint you. Hope simply says: even after everything I've experienced, I still believe there are good people in the world. That kind of hope isn't naive, it's resilient. It's the kind of hope that's been tested. It's the kind that's been knocked down and chose to stand back up. that's a different kind of strength. there was a time in my life. When I believed protecting my heart meant keeping everyone at a distance. it felt safe, no expectations, no vulnerability, no chance of being hurt. But after a while I realized something. I wasn't just avoiding heartbreak, I was avoiding connection. I wasn't protecting myself from disappointment. I was protecting myself from joy. That was a five-year journey for me to get myself right because the walls I built didn't know the difference between Blocking everything. And maybe that's where some of you are today, not angry, not bitter, just closed. You know, you still smile, you still go to work, you still show up for your responsibilities, but you've quietly decided that no one will ever know the real you again. If that's where you are, I understand that. But I also want to encourage you not to stay there forever. Healing doesn't happen because time passes. Healing happens because we choose not to let pain be the final word. That choice doesn't happen once, it happens over and over again. Every time you decide to answer the phone, every time you agree to meet a friend for coffee. every time you have an honest conversation instead of pretending you're okay, every time you choose forgiveness, not because someone earned it, but because you refuse to carry the weight any longer. See, healing is often quiet. it rarely announces itself. Sometimes it looks like laughing alone. Sometimes it looks like sleeping through the night. Sometimes it looks like realizing you've talked about your past without crying. Sometimes it looks like trusting someone with a small piece of your story and discovering they handled it with care. Healing isn't one giant moment, it's thousands of little moments that slowly teach you your heart doesn't have to live in survival mode anymore. Now, if you're wondering how to trust again, start small. You don't have to give someone your whole story today. You don't have to pretend the hurt never happened. Trust grows one decision at a time, one honest conversation, one kept promise, one act of consistency, one person who proves over time that they're worthy of a deeper place in your life. Trust isn't built overnight. That's okay. The strongest foundations never are. also want to say something to those of you who have been blessed with people who have stayed. Don't take them for granted. Tell them what they mean to you. Call them, thank them, sit with them a little longer. Life has a way of reminding us that time is precious. The people who show up when life gets messy are rare. Those are the relationships worth investing in. Those are the people who remind us that trust isn't a gamble every time. Sometimes it's a gift that's returned with faithfulness. So as we close today, want you to remember one simple truth. The goal isn't to avoid every heartbreak. If it were, we'd never love, we'd never dream, we'd never build friendships, we'd never take chances. We'd simply exist. And I don't believe we were created just to exist. I believe we were created to connect, to encourage, to love, to be known, to know others. Yes, there's risks. There always has been, there always will be. But some risks are worth taking because on the other side of that risk might be the friendship that could change your life. The mentor who believes in you before you believe in yourself. The spouse who becomes your safe place. The neighbor who becomes family. The stranger who becomes one of your greatest blessings. None of these stories begin without someone deciding to open a door. You know, so if today you're carrying the weight of the world, the weight of disappointment, carry this instead. Someone else's decision to hurt you does not mean your decision to love was wrong. Say that again in your head, man. their betrayal was their choice. Your willingness to love was yours. Don't confuse the two. Don't let someone else's failure become the reason you stop becoming the person you were created to be. Keep your boundaries, of course. Grow with wisdom. Pay attention to patterns. Learn from the past. But don't surrender your hope. Because the world doesn't need. More closed hearts. It needs more healed hearts. Hearts that can still know pain but choose compassion. Hearts that can understand loss but still believe in love. Hearts that have every reason to give up on a person and choose us not to. So, guys, that's all I have for you today. I want to leave you with one simple thing. Maybe trust isn't about believing and no one will ever hurt you again. Maybe trust is believing that even if someone does, you won't let it steal your ability to love, to hope, or to live, because that's real strength. Hey guys, remember, your life is the only sermon some people will ever hear. So make it loud. I'm your average Delton. Out.