imperfect perfection
If someone were to ask you how many times a day you talked down on yourself, would it be too many times for you to count?
Someone asked me this appalling question once, and I didn’t have an answer. Not because I never talked down on myself but because I talked badly about myself so many times I couldn’t even count each time on my fingers.
We do this. We do this thing where we strive for ultimate perfection. We strive to have every single task done perfectly right that when one thing is off, we suddenly go from talented to stupid, from smart to dumb, from dedicated to apathetic. We tell ourselves these things. We fill our minds with thoughts about ourselves that would be too unsuitably inaccurate to even proclaim in public. Why? Because we aim to be a person greater than the greatest person, Jesus.
If there is any perfect person besides Jesus, give me their number because the only person I know that lived the most perfect life is the person allowing us to live our imperfect lives freely. Freely, without the fear of not being good enough, we--the most undeserving of all people--get to live imperfect lives without any despair, without any fear of being told we can’t because He says we can, no matter how imperfect we live.
The lies we tell ourselves and the words we scream into our hearts won’t change our imperfectness. We will always be imperfect and there will always be flaws but through Christ, these imperfections and flaws are seen as blessings and are only bigger ways for us to love others more deeply.
We will never reach perfection, no matter how hard any of us try. We can’t be perfect, but we can love perfectly.
It’s time we start complimenting ourselves on our imperfections rather than criticizing the things we cannot perfect. Ultimate perfection will never be accomplished through a heart set on perfection. Perfection is accomplished when we stop perfecting and start embracing the people Jesus has put in front of us. Love them, cherish them, shower them with the never ending love of our Savior, our neverending Jesus. Then maybe, the things you say about yourself will be a little less inaccurate and a little more true because in all things, you are and will always be imperfect perfection in the eyes of Jesus.
You are loved, and you are loved big.
Your sister in Christ,
Elizabeth
