A while back I did a post titled Practice Makes Perfect and talked about my struggles with trying to be perfect. I think for those of us who believe in the triune God and have read the verse in Matthew “Be perfect, therefore, as your Heavenly Father is perfect,” (5:48) we strive for this and then often beat ourselves up when we fail. I know I do.
A few years ago I was praying and telling Jesus my desire to live perfectly and to respond to Him perfectly. I sensed Him telling me that is not what He wants from me, because perfection is not possible for us human beings.
I had also come across something that said the original Greek word for perfect is teleios. That word can also be translated in a few different ways. It ended up in many translations of the Bible as perfect but it can also mean complete and whole.
I remember thinking “What?” Whole? Let me read it that way. “Be ye whole, just as your heavenly Father is whole.” Hmmm.
So then I got out my trusty dictionary (my phone app, of course) and looked up the word whole. Two definitions are 1) recovered from a wound or injury: restored and 2) being healed. Oh. My. Gosh. Restored? Healed? Isn’t that what Jesus was? Isn’t that what I want?
Anymore, perfection is not my goal. I want to be restored and healed. And honestly, that is a long process. I will be in the “restoring” and “healing” process the rest of my life.
So back then, when I was telling Jesus my desire to live and follow Him perfectly, I sensed Him telling me He wants me to, again and again, and then yet again, turn my face towards Him. The distractions of being human will constantly try to keep me from doing this. Now that I am aware, the more I can consciously choose.
I know I just want to turn. I see myself at a T intersection. I can turn left and strive for perfection (and fail) or I can turn right, towards wholeness and restoration and healing, trusting that my faith will eventually lead me there.
Turn right, my friends. Let us all turn right.
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