Here I am, sitting at my desk and wondering what I should share today. And then I think, “Man, here I go again. I’m trying to control everything. I’m trying to put my touch on life, trying to think about what people want to hear from me.” But that’s not what this is about. I have to ask myself, “What do people need to hear from God?“

Lately, God has been teaching me how to take the emphasis off of myself and onto Him. I find myself constantly thinking, “Let me figure this out.” But instead I need to ask myself, “What is the path God wants me on this year?” I am amazed at how weak my faith can be at times. Why is it so hard to let it all go and just trust God?

Last week I was sitting down with one of my friends who was telling me just how hard it is to discuss things with his wife. This can be true for all of us, can’t it? We allow ourselves to get vulnerable in certain areas of our lives, but not others. Those we want to keep just to ourselves; we don’t want to let anybody in. But we know we can’t keep it from God. Why is it that we care more about what people think of us than what God thinks?

The greater your platform, the more people expect to you to be a “Godly” person. It’s harder to be transparent about your thoughts and the things you struggle with if you feel the pressure to be a perfect example to those watching. Is this pride? I think once a man is placed in a position of leadership, whether that be as a pastor or a small group leader, something instantly grabs a hold of their senses and they think, “I can’t be the weak one.”

By linking arms with someone we can trust along this journey of life, we can stop burying these things and release some of them. That’s why we are created to live in community — to share each other’s burdens. I believe this concept that we have to hold it all together and keep it to ourselves is directly from the devil. This is one of the internal battles of good versus evil that we face.

I’m not strong enough to face this life on my own; I will get sucked back into the things of this world. But I don’t think we’re supposed to. If you look at the early Church in the New Testament, we see people who uprooted their lives, shared everything — money, homes, jobs, families — in order to advance the Kingdom and grow the Church. Why can’t we do that? How can we have lives that are lived radically for the Gospel? When we do life together, we can fill in the faith gaps on both sides and push each other closer to God.

It’s important to have a few men in your life you can become totally vulnerable with. Even the strongest man is not perfect. Faith in Christ is the cornerstone in our lives; it’s our connection to Heaven. And our faith will be tested again and again. In fact, Jesus promises that our lives will only become harder when we decide to die to ourselves and live for His glory.

I’m pushing for old-style Church — doing life together the way they used to. There’s power in this. When we truly live radically different from the rest of the world, they will take notice, and we will become set apart for God.

“All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.” —Acts 2:44-47

— Adam LaRoche, former MLB player

The Increase, part of the Sports Spectrum Network, is a community of Christian pro athletes sharing their personal stories of the decrease of self and the increase of Christ (John 3:30). Visit TheIncrease.com for more stories and videos.