Finding a Safe Place Where You are Loved

Have you ever felt completely safe to be your authentic self with a person or a group of people? It is an amazing, healing experience to find that person or community who fully embrace you, no matter what. I know many people are searching for such a community and sometimes they are hard to find. In this article, I will share about some safe places and people that I have found and I would love for you to share your safe places in the comments. If you are searching, please share where you live and maybe others will find you or help connect you to a safe place near you.

My first safe person is my husband of 27 years. Our unconditional love for each other has filled voids and healed wounds as we have traveled through an unsafe world together. Of course, we are imperfect and broken so our relationship has never been perfect, but we believe in each other and love each other on the good days and the bad years. Life is so much richer and easier to navigate with such a partner.

A few years ago during Covid, we were searching for a new church or community where we could connect with people who share our values and love everyone without exception. We had been through the most difficult year of our lives and had broken free from some very toxic relationships and situations. It was hard to find the courage to put ourselves in a position to be hurt again, but we somehow did and visited a new church community called The Open Table in Landen, Ohio. We are so glad we did!

Many churches say that everyone is welcome and loved, but The Open Table genuinely means it. We were given an opportunity to share our stories, our questions, our emotions, and our hopes without judgment or censure. We have gradually built relationships with some amazing people and are working alongside them to provide hope and healing to others in the community. We are creating safe space in the world for people who have been hurt and rejected. We love, value and accept everyone.

There are also several online communities and resources that have helped me feel less alone and have fed me spiritually over the past few years. I will share about a few of them briefly and encourage you to explore them for yourself.

After hearing about the late Rachel Held Evans on NPR, I read one of her books and then listened to the Evolving Faith podcast. Some good friends also encouraged me to join the Evolving Faith community online and attend their conference either virtually or in-person. I attended virtually last fall and hope to travel to the next one to hear wonderful speakers and make new friends.

I have also found some wise guides and learned a lot through the podcasts from the Center for Action and Contemplation: https://cac.org/podcasts/. My favorites so far have been Love Period and Learning How to See. I have taken them with me on many walks and nurtured my spirit and my body simultaneously.

Another wise and creative guide is David Hayward, aka the Naked Pastor who creates a safe place on Facebook to share openly about how we have been hurt by religion. His artwork and his words are helping hoards of broken and rejected people heal and connect.

I would love to hear about your safe places and people too, so please share in the comments. If you aren’t in a safe loving place, please don’t settle for less than you deserve. Lastly, I want to share an amazing song(which I may have shared before) about finding a safe place to land and extending a hand of hope to others.