Let Them Be Imperfect

"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" -Romans 3:23

"Indeed there is no one on Earth who is righteous, no one who does what is right and never sins". -Ecclesiastes 7:20 

"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me." -Philippians 3:12 

Since I have been at home full-time with my daughter, I have slacked off significantly on routines like applying makeup daily and taking the time to style my hair. I know that I am not a hideous monster without those things (though sometimes I feel that way) or a supermodel with them (by any means!), but I have become aware of who I feel comfortable being around without my flaws and imperfections concealed, curled, and Cover-Girl'ed. There are some people who look at me like something they scraped off their shoe when I am not "fixed up", some well-meaning folks who ask if I am sick (gotta love that ;)), and some who know and love me well enough to see me the same no matter what my appearance may be.

That last group of people exemplifies how I want to treat others, not only regarding how they look physically, but how they behave spiritually, make me feel emotionally, and their attitude that displays where they are mentally.

Do I allow people to be imperfect…flawed…human?

Do I listen to confessions from others without judging or gossiping?

Do I write off a flippant comment from a friend as the result of a bad day without fuming about it for weeks?

Do I associate with someone with views passionately different from mine without trying to force them into my line of thinking?

Do I shower others with the grace that Jesus showers on me?

Honestly, I believe that often this is an area that I often fail in personally and that the church often fails in as a whole. Not "the church" as in the church that I am a member of, but "the church" as in all of us saved folks out there…Jesus's church. Many unsaved sinners do not come in church buildings because they believe that those inside expect them to be perfect before they do. Many saved sinners find it hard to stay because they feel that others expect them to be perfect since they are there.

Before I run you off, let me clarify a few things. #1: I am not saying that we should allow sin to run rampant in churches. #2: I am not saying that we should not all strive to be perfect like our Savior. Absolutely we should, in His power and according to His instruction. #3: I am not saying that every person or every church has a problem with this.

My point is that though we are seeking to be like Jesus, we need to know just like He does that we are all human. Though we dislike being tempted by Satan, we ALL are. Though we desire not to sin, we ALL will.  Your biggest temptation may not be mine. The sin you struggle most with may not be the one that I fight daily and lose to often. That doesn't matter. The fact is that we have a common enemy (the devil) and a common Hero (our Lord, Jesus Christ). Why can't we realize that puts us on the same team? A team that needs to protect one another, lift up the fallen, tend to the wounded, and fight for each and every person on that team. This does not include judgment, gossip, criticism, dirty looks, rolled eyes, or beating someone over the head metaphorically with the Bible.

There are many things that make it difficult for us to allow someone to be imperfect: struggles with our own flaws, hurt feelings, fear of others' opinions, pride, lies of the enemy, snap judgments, the list goes on and on. It can absolutely be a challenge and goes against our fleshly nature in a major way, but it is nothing that we and Jesus cannot take on together. I think about the chant that I have heard sports teams yell out before a game, "Together we stand, divided we fall, together we play, or we don't play at all." Let's start standing together and playing to win against the devil.

Prayer

Dear Lord, thank You, our perfect Savior, for loving our imperfect selves so much. Help us to love one another with that same grace-giving, mercy-abounding love. May we be a beacon of hope to those around us and be so filled with Your presence that they are drawn to You through us. Help us stand together and play to win against the enemy. Thank You for victory in Jesus. It's in His name I pray, Amen!