‎Release yourself from the chains of being perfect and let God's grace cover you

Rarely do I enjoy hearing, “That’s good.” I would much rather hear, “That’s great!” But most of all, I would rather hear, “That’s PERFECT”. This isn’t an easy post for me to write. I don’t want to admit my shortcomings. I don’t want to sit here and tell you the dirtiest parts of my heart, but it’s something that the Lord has really convicted me of the past few weeks. I have been a prisoner of perfection – I have been captive to serving a god that is not THE God.

My life is a constant strive for perfection and accomplishment.  I see it in every area of my life. When I say every area of my life, I mean it.

If I’m going to run, it’s not going to be an easy 2 miles. If I run, it’s going to be a hard 8 mile run.. every day. I don’t like being average -  I want to be the best. I don’t want to be in OK shape, I want to be in the best shape I can be in. My body image is the biggest area of my life I see this perfectionism god rule. Missing a day of working out or eating junk can ruin my whole day. I have been a prisoner of serving a false god that tells me being a size 0 or under 110 pounds is it.

Let's take another example in my life. I enjoy baking. But, if I make a cake, it’s not going to be a sheet cake. If I make a cake, it will be the most perfectly sculpted masterpiece I feel I can do. I don't want it to be an average cake - I want it to be a jaw dropper. 

Don't get me wrong. It is good to have high goals and aspirations. Striving for perfection can be a good thing, but not when it starts to become your identity. I’ve always wanted to be the best of everything. – I wanted to be the best this, the best that. Fill in the blank. I could blame it on being OCD. I could blame it on the fact that I am stuck with the same genes as my father – someone I see as flawless. However, I the problem goes much deeper than that. The pursuit for perfection comes from my own insecurity. The problem comes from an insecurity and a longing – a longing for something that EVERY HUMAN BEING has in all of our hearts; A longing for fulfillment, a longing for approval, a longing for a “well done”. A longing that can only be filled with Christ Jesus.

My whole life I longed for this fulfillment. But why? I feel like I had it REALLY good growing up. I had an amazing home life, good friends, good education, etc. But that longing, that feeling of wanting to hear that “well-done” was always there. So I chased it. I chased anything I could to feel the acceptance that I'd wanted. I chased my identity through my major, my athletics, my looks, my body, etc. And you know what? It was NEVER enough, and it’s STILL never enough. The only complete fulfillment comes from Jesus. I can come to Christ imperfect.  I can come to Christ bruised, broken, flawed, blemished, and weak. Metaphorically, I can come to Him after slaving over a cake 8 hours only to produce a disaster. I can come to Him exhausted after a race to find a peace and rest. In fact, I have found that some of my most beautiful moments in life have been when I've surrendered all attempts at being perfect, and I come broken to Jesus at the foot of the Cross. But, there is hope, especially for someone who so chases perfection. Are you ready for this? Get ready for this. Because I'm so excited to write this right now, I can hardly stand it.

CHRISTIAN: In Christ, YOU ARE PERFECT.

I'm not kidding. I'm sitting here in my room kind of having a hard time holding back wanting to get up and dance and sing. If you are in Christ, you are made perfect. It is finished! But, hear that again. I said, "In CHRIST". Not "in me". "In CHRIST, we are made perfect." I so want to end on that note, but I must address my issues. 

Ever so often, I will feel my flesh fighting this. I feel myself trying to achieve perfection of this world and doing it on my own terms. The chase for perfection is the thorn in my side. It is what I am always trying to fight – whether it be through my weight, or my actions, or my grades, or my baking, or my performance, it is ALWAYS trying to take me down. The best thing is it is no match against my God. MY GOD always prevails. In Christ I am made perfect.  I don't have to try so hard.

So here is where it gets icky. Here is where I confess. Last week I was emotionally exhausted. I was physically exhausted. I’d run my body into an injury running so much trying to achieve what I thought to be physical beauty. I’d made my self weak by trying to serve the false god of perfection.  I was trying to perform. I was chasing an image. I was chasing what I thought looked perfect. But, the thing about trying to be perfect is… it is YOU trying to perfect yourself. So then where is God in all that? We try and we try to live out these perfect lives, trying to maintain a perfect image for all to see on Facebook or other social media. I am guilty of it. I try to perform and perfect my image, and in turn all that really happens is I fail, and my shortcomings and my imperfections are magnified. My trying becomes harder and harder as I focus more and more on myself. And eventually, nothing is ever good enough. I have to be MORE in shape, or skinnier, or smarter, or more “fill in the blank”. The reason for this is it is never enough. We will never be satisfied in chasing this world. 

I must finish with this. Perfection can be achieved, but through one thing and that is Christ Jesus - the ultimate perfecter. We must learn to release ourselves from the chains of being perfect and let God’s grace cover us. I hope today you are encouraged by this and I hope you surrender to Christ and let HIM do the perfecting. It is so exhausting trying to do it on your own. Let the God of this universe take you under his never-ending love and experience true fulfillment. 

“It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect.” Psalm 18:32