I look around me and I see beauty in everyone. I consider my family and friends- their positive characteristics as well as their less than lovely issues, and I am convinced that, deep down, everyone is loving and kind, in spite of less than admirable choices, mistakes or environments. And I'm sure I am not alone.
It's human nature to argue that our good outweighs our bad, yet even at our personal best, we are at our worst because our "goodness" and our "beauty" is only circumstantial. The sin that so easily ensures us makes it impossible for us to be completely whole, completely perfect or completely guilt free 24/7. We can do good things, say good things, act in a good way and encourage others to do the same, but without Christ, our best has holes in it and leaks out any effort we make to combat our imperfections.
Human nature tells us to excuse our flaws away; make light of wrong doings, compare ourselves to others, explain why our issues are personal and no one else's business... we've all been guilty of the "cover up". In Genesis chapter 3, we see that Adam and Eve produced the first attempt to cover and explain away their sin and man has been doing that ever since. Why? It's because the "cover up" is easier than the confession. It's easy to pretend nothing is wrong or that we have it all figured out. It's easy to excuse our messes or to avoid people who we know have higher standards for us than we do for ourselves. But there is no freedom in the "cover up". Christ has come to take away our shame and trade it for His freedom!
"But the Scriptures declare that we are all prisoners of sin,
so we receive God’s promise of freedom only by believing in Jesus Christ."~Galatians 3:22
Sin is a prison and it confines us when we don't confess. Like weeds, it creeps in and restricts the opportunity for complete beauty to shine through. Confession is the pruning of the weeds which goals are only to hold us back and strangle God's Spirit within us, which is ours through Jesus. But let's be real. None of us go around exposing every internal conflict, mistake or issue. And as Christian women, we often get slapped with the hypocrisy syndrome- we are afraid to expose our problems in fear that others will judge or reject us. But I think it is important for us all to understand that hiding our issues is not strength, it is the lack of it. Maturity is the ability to live humbly before God and before man. Instead of hiding, its more liberating to recognize this is the number one struggle that the majority of us deal with in our lives: how to live a Christ-centered life, despite our spiritual struggles. I know I am not alone in this.
Last quarter, the Pearls completed a study on the book of Esther, and I'd like to share a quote which got my brain rolling on this subject. "Even those most serious about their pursuit of God and godliness fail to be perfect examples all the time. That's why God is busy conforming us into the likeness of Christ."
To me, this is a sigh of relief and a breath of fresh air! In my weakness and in my struggles to avoid temptation, God has made Christ strong in me! Not so that I can continue to practice things which His word instructs me not to do, but so that I can have the resilience and the desire to say no when such things begin to slither my way.
To be human is not synonymous with hypocrisy. This was a fear that I spent the first years of my salvation trying to avoid and prove; to no avail. It's debilitating for us to deny the reality of our humanity. Christ calls us not to ignore it, but to expose it and to receive forgiveness and grace that only He can give! 1 John 1:9 is a scripture that we have committed ourselves to learn in our Bible Study:
"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us and cleanse us of all wrong".
Perfection is not proof of salvation! We each WILL FALL. Let's go ahead and accept that reality now and save ourselves so much stress and worry. Our beauty isn't based on our efforts, its a result of God's goodness. When we live for Him, our lives are immaculate. But when we fall, know that we fall in God's grace! Our flaws are made perfect when we trust Him with all our hearts- The great and the misguided; the struggles and the victories. His loving kindness will catch us each and every time- when we are truthful with Him, with ourselves and with others. He is more than enough for all that we endure and he equips us with what we need, as we need it. We can find trusted mentors, family members or friends to pray with us and encourage us, because this Journey with Jesus is dynamic when we are connected with others. And as we travel and grow, confess and progress, we begin to shine like Christ, in spite of our situation, and that is true Strength!
As we live this life of faith and over come our instincts to cover up, then the beauty that is ours in Christ becomes more visible and exposed. This is the true testimony: not that we are good, but that God is great! We each have our ashes, but God wants to trade them for His beauty (Isaiah 61:3). That is what makes others feel encouraged and motivated to take part in this life of Grace!
One day, we will shine like our savior and we will be free from all of our flaws, but until then...Be bold in your living! Grace is not meant to be covered up, but shared and displayed! His love is continuously perfecting us and that is worth smiling about!
~Pearls
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