GRACE and NOT Perfection

 Growing up I had been taught that Christians are always supposed to have it all together, all the time. If you were going through a hard time, you must have sinned or done something wrong. God wasn't pushing you to draw closer to Him and grow in your faith, He was punishing you. And since God was punishing you for something you did wrong, it was your own fault so you shouldn't let anybody know that you are struggling or that anything is wrong. Everything is fine, all the time. 
 This affected so many lives in ways I never thought would be possible. Keeping your feelings bottled up inside and feeling like you were continually failing God took a huge toll on people. 
"Oh, your marriage is falling apart and your cousin died? Too bad. Nothing THAT bad is happening in your life. You must have done something wrong though. So its your fault. Put a smile on your face and be a light for Christ." You get the gist of the way it was. 
  Constantly striving to reach an un-attainable level of perfection and happiness but not being able to because you were continually masking your pain and struggles with a fake and broken smile.

  In the past couple of years I have come to realize that what I had been taught was completely wrong. 
 Hard times aren't designed to punish. I now know that they are designed to strengthen my relationship with Christ. If I allow God to work through me in times of trial the outcome will always be SO much better than if I had gone at it alone. Another thing I now know is that I don't have to pretend that I have everything together. I am a real person and I have real problems and real feelings. Things can become super hard for me and I may just need someone to talk to and pray with. The body of believers is supposed to lift one another up in prayer, but how can they if they have no idea who is struggling, and what with? The truth is they can't. 
  That's right. I am quite far from perfect. No I don't have it all together and I do NOT know everything. No I won't ever reach perfection, "have it all together", or know everything. But is that going to stop me from pressing on to every day learn as much as I can about Christ and become more like Him? No, I won't let that stop me. Philippians 3:12 says-
     "Not that I have already obtained it, or have already become perfect, but I press on in order that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus."

 Every day I strive to be more like Christ. Sure, I will mess up but I hold myself to a standard of GRACE and not perfection. 

   So you, yeah you! Go on. Be a LIGHT! Not a perfectly bright light that doesn't flicker, because in all honesty you aren't a perfect person and neither am I. Be transparent and share with others what you are struggling with. It will open doors.
  And remember to hold yourself to a standard of GRACE and not perfection.

                                                        {Sarah Elisabeth}

                                                                Romans 8:28