James 3:2 says. All of us make a lot of mistakes. If someone doesn’t make any mistakes when he speaks, he would be perfect. He would be able to control everything he does.
There is a movie called Mary Poppins. Mary describes herself as “Practically perfect in every way.” Of course, Mary wasn’t really perfect. Not even close. No one is. Most of us aren’t like Mary. We’re actually hyper focused in on our flaws. We’re not bragging about out level of perfection. In fact, we find it difficult to see our good points because we’re so focused on the bad. This is something that we need to come to grips with. Why? Because our perceived imperfections make us hesitate in so many areas. We hesitate to get close to others, worried about what they’ll think about us. We’re even hesitant to draw near to God, afraid He will push us away because we don’t measure up.
So when we fail, struggle, or face obstacles, it can make us feel we are not enough.
Are we enough?
There are two answers to this question.
The first is, of course is no. We’re frail. We’re human. We fail. None of us is perfect.
But because of what God has done for us, because of Christ who died for us, because of the Spirit within us, that’s not the final answer.
The second and truest answer is, yes, we are enough and so much more.
So today instead of worrying about all the things you find wrong with yourself-, the mistakes you’ve made, your level of spirituality- why not thank God for your imperfections? If you were perfect, you wouldn’t need Him. Your beautiful imperfections offer Him the opportunity to shine through. When you struggle within adequacy, He takes up the slack. When you take a tumble, He’s there to brush off the dust and put you on your feet again.
The heavenly Father is leaning down and whispering in our ears, “You’re more than enough for me! Stop worrying about not being worthy. Stop worrying about having to prove yourself to Me. Just relax. Be yourself. I’ll take care of the rest. In fact, I already have…. On Calvary.”
2 Corinthians 12:9-10 — But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
I was never meant to be strong enough, brave enough, spiritual enough, to serve in life. I was meant to rely on the strength of the One who is higher than I.
This is the beauty of living a life doing things that are not out of our own power but out of that of our Father’s. In life I learned that living life in full abandonment is not always pretty. Each and every day I have to press into God’s presence in order to make it through to the next hour. But never once was He looking for me to be strong enough, He was just looking for me to be obedient. He wasn’t calling me to be the loudest during prayer or the first to step up to preach. He was calling me to do something outside of my own capabilities so that there could be beauty in Him being gloried in my weakness.
More than anything else, the lie that we’re not enough is what trips us up when we struggle. I’ve seen it happen again and again in my own life. The reason is that as long as we believe we’re not enough, we also believe we have to make up for it. So instead of running to Jesus, we flee to self-improvement, trying harder, exhausting ourselves. But there is a better way. Receiving. Letting God fill up our “not enough” with his infinite love, grace, and strength until we’re overflowing.
2 Peter 1:3 “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness”
God may be calling you to do something that is outside of your own human abilities and that’s okay. If we did everything out of our own strength, there would never be an opportunity for us to rely on Christ’s sovereignty and grace. It’s time that we stop tip toeing on the shores of life because we are afraid we won’t be able to swim in the deep end. When we know who our strength comes from – there are no limits and there is no I am not enough. So, jump in. The water is truly amazing.
