Have you ever referred to yourself as a “Perfectionist”? Do you often feel stressed out and anxious when things or circumstances aren’t perfect?
I know lots of people who are self-proclaimed “perfectionists”. I think it’s in all of us to some degree to long for and desire perfection. It can feel unsettling when things aren’t exactly how we think they should be or how we intended them to be. But the truth is, we live in a very imperfect world. We ourselves are very imperfect. The only One who is perfect and who achieves perfect is God. Yet, we still allow ourselves to become stressed out when we don’t meet this impossible standard.
When we approach life as though we must be perfect, we are setting ourselves up for failure. We’re not God. We’re not going to be perfect. Ever. At anything. So if that’s the standard that we’ve set for ourselves, we’re going to go through life feeling like a failure. We’re going to walk through life with a whole lot of extra stress and anxiety that we don’t need to carry. We’re going to walk through life heavily burdened by this impossible standard and weight. I think it’s time we stop setting ourselves and others up for failure by expecting from a human what only God Himself is capable of.
Perfectionism also keeps us stuck. When our standard is perfection, then we’re never quite satisfied and we must keep going back again and again to get it perfect. We think we can’t move forward until we reach perfect. But perfect will never come. So we don’t experience momentum into all that God has in store for us. We can become spiritually paralyzed by perfectionism. The truth is, if Jesus hadn’t died on the cross, we would need to depend on our own vain attempt at perfection. But He did die for us. And that’s the amazing reality of grace we get to live in each day of our lives! We don’t have to strive. We don’t have to be perfect. Instead, We get to live out of gratitude that a Perfect Jesus canceled our debt.
God knows we’re not perfect. He knew this when He called you His child. He knew this when He asked me to be obedient to the calling in my life. He knows we’re not perfect, but He still invites us to work alongside Him to restore the world back to Himself. We get to be a part of what He is doing! And it didn’t require us to pass a test with a perfect score first. I don’t know about you, but that makes me sigh a huge sigh of relief! I’m stepping into His plans for me with full disclosure of my imperfect nature and He still wants me to take part in what He is doing!
What I’ve come to see and realize, is that God can still change hearts and work miracles, even when I make mistakes and fail. It was never really about me and my accomplishments to begin with! It’s always been about what God wants to do and me and my imperfection doesn’t hinder God at all! He doesn’t need me, but He chooses to use me and I am full of gratitude for that. He simply wants my obedience. He wants me to step into whatever He has called me to, not because of my perfection, but out of faith that, despite my lack, He is able to and about to do great things.
I remember volunteering at my church back a year or so ago for a night of worship. I was operating a camera and, from a production standpoint, so much was happening that night that was far from perfect. Mistakes were being made, equipment was breaking, ques were being missed. It honestly kind of felt like a disaster. It was an opportune moment to question why God allows us humans to do His work. Later that evening though, I had multiple conversations with people who had attended the event. Over and over again each one said the same thing. They all talked about how powerfully God had moved that night in their own souls and how His presence was felt so strongly in the room. It was in that moment that I realized this truth that God is not dependent on our perfection in order for Him to work and move! Not even a little!
There’s a simple prayer I like to pray often whenever I feel called to do something that I don’t feel adequate to do. This is what I say:
God. I don’t got this. But You got this. So let’s go!
It’s not proper English, I know. But it’s become an important prayer for me for a few reasons. The first reason is that it forces me to acknowledge where I am in my own strength and abilities. I don’t got this. Second, I remember that it’s not about me and my abilities or perfection, it’s about God and what He wants to do. And He has the ability and power to do anything. He does got this! And third, it’s a surrender prayer, that I lay down my fears and my trust in myself, and I chose to move forward in faith of what God is going to do. Not being capable of something in our own power, but trusting fully in the One whose power is above all, is the most empowering place we can ever be in. So the next time fears of your lack of perfection creep in or you feel stuck, try this prayer!
The Bible does talk about doing our best. Colossians 3:23 says, “In all the work you are doing, work the best you can. Work as if you were doing it for the Lord, not for people.” I’m not saying that we don’t give our best. But our best is never going to be perfection, and that’s okay. When we approach everything that God has called us to with the intention, not to be perfect, but to do our best, we can come away with peace knowing that we did what God has asked of us. We were obedient to His calling, and we did our best with what we had and what we knew at the time. We bring ourselves, and we let God do this rest.
Are you a self-proclaimed perfectionist? How can you begin your journey today to allow God to be the Perfect One and you to simply bring yourself, imperfections and all? Leave me a comment, I’d love to know!
If you want a head start in your journey to becoming the person God created you to be, I’ve made some printable journal pages that are yours for free! You can click here to download those and use them each morning to really start your day off right!
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