Perfection. How many of you struggle with this in your life? I know I do. I want everything to be just right. I fight against it, but a lot of times, perfection wins. I want the staple in the paper to be just right. I want the meeting to go perfect as I say and express everything correctly. I strove for excellent grades, I wanted to be perfect in my friendships. If you are a perfectionist, I know you can relate. Now I know to some, these things are not struggles, but for me it is.

I confess to you that I have gotten a lot better in this area. I can now admit I am not perfect and this is a messed up part of my life. I still desire and crave to be the perfect teacher, the perfect ministry leader, the perfect Christian. This is one of the many flaws in me. It has always been difficult to admit the imperfections that I have to anyone. I wanted people to always think I had it all together.

However, today, I am able to admit to you that I am not a perfect husband, not a perfect Dad, not a perfect friend, and not a perfect Christ-follower. Wow, that took a lot out of me to type. See, I still struggle. For some of you this may not be your struggle and that’s ok, but it is mine. I am so thankful my Savior is still working on me. I am not perfect, but my Savior is.

I know I was going to try and leave Psalm 18, but there was another nugget I pulled from David’s writing. He said, “God’s way is perfect. All the Lord’s promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to him for protection. For who is God except the Lord? Who but our God is a solid rock? God arms me with strength, and he makes my way perfect. He makes me as surefooted as a deer, enabling me to stand on mountain heights. He trains my hands for battle; he strengthens my arm to draw a bronze bow. You have given me your shield of victory. Your right hand supports me; your help has made me great. You have made a wide path for my feet to keep them from slipping.”

Did you see those words in the beginning, God’s way is perfect? No matter what you are facing today He knows what you are going through. People blame God for many things in their lives. Over the past few days I have listened to several people exclaim God is the reason for their calamity. I have been able to share with them that God gave every human being the free-will to make their own choices.

All of us must realize we need to forgive and we need to start by forgiving God. Yes, you read that right. A lot of people today hold a grudge against the Creator because they believe He caused their hardships or the hurts they have faced in life. If you have walked through abuse, I am very sorry. Every man and woman has a choice and they each make them. Some of their choices hurt others deeply. God did not make them do the wrongs against you.

God also will not force you to do the right things in life. His words in Scripture will help lead and guide us, but He will not force us. I am so glad He leads us to make right choices, but He always leaves us with the choice to do the right or the wrong thing.

Stop for a moment and think about perfection. Think about God and the perfection that is in Him. There is no darkness in Him at all. God is light, pure light. Perfect love describes Him as well. He is someone who will never do a selfish, self-centered, self-serving act that would harm anyone at any time. Imagine a perfect God and that is what God is. Everything God does is perfect and He always does what is best for you and for me.

We have a hard time thinking this way because the world we live in is far from perfect. Mankind turned away from God and rejected all of His loving ways. We, mankind, fell for lies and we still fall for them today. God is perfect and we are not. However, one day we will be because of His grace.

So, I say again, God’s way is perfect. He knew from the foundation of the world there would be a guy named Joey in South Carolina who struggles with not being perfect. So what do I do? I need to reflect His image in me. I don’t need to be the ideal man and try to portray perfect to everyone around me. I need to allow God to show me how to be who I am in Him. The staple in the corner of the page is not straight, but today, I am okay with that. How about you?