Holy Father,
All week long, I’ve been struggling with understanding Your idea of perfection.
I confess to You that my perspective was based more on the standards on a report card than the Truth of Your Word. I tend to look for that perfect score, instead of looking to You, my Perfect Core.
Your law is perfect (Psalm 19:7) and somehow that confused me to think that I needed to adhere to it with flawless precision. I hear Your challenge to “be perfect” like You, and I immediately chase my own understanding of what that must look like (Matthew 5:48). I start trying to do the right things, even though You’ve told me over and again that doing stuff can never make me perfect (Hebrews 7:19; 10:1).
I’ve got to stop leaning on my own understanding of all of this (Proverbs 3:5). Will you help me? My only hope for perfection is Your Perfect Life within me. Live that through me.
It’s my spirit that has been made perfect (Hebrews 12:23), not every jot and tittle of my actions. During this lifetime, my conscious will never be “perfect” by my actions and it’s okay (Hebrews 9:9). It’s only by accepting Your perfection as my own that I can have a clear conscious (Hebrews 9:14). And even this is a process – made complete only by enduring that which You bring into my life (James 1:4).
Help me to stop thinking about what I look like and focus in on You (Hebrews 12:2). That is the real key here. Your Son kept on entrusting Himself to You daily – so why do I think I should get a short cut (1 Peter 2:23)?
In this moment, I trust You. That’s the closest that I can be – perfect in my willingness now. Let’s go from this place together.
.