For years, my family and I would watch American Idol together. And often times, if Randy Jackson would say something negative about a contestant’s performance, he would always end his comments by saying, “Hey, just keepin’ it real, dog. Just keepin' it real.” Do you keep it real in life? Do you deal with things openly and honestly, not pretending everything's all right when you know it's not? Lots of us have a closet in our hearts in which we put all the junk that we don't want to deal with - disappointments, guilt, betrayal, and on and on. And we think "out of sight, out of mind." But listen, I can promise you that the junk in the closet will stunt your spiritual growth and steal your joy. We need to clean out the closet with God’s help and get real with Him. The process may be painful, but the results will be so worth it! Now that’s REAL HOPE.