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Breaking Perfect, Part 5


These last few weeks, we’ve been “breaking perfect”. I’ve been pretty honest about how much my striving for perfection has cost me in time, finances and especially my peace.

The validation I felt like I needed from other people, the fear of failure - and sometimes even the fear of success - all worked within me to cause a weird procrastination - some friends and I call it the “paralysis of analysis” - where I overthink and plan so much that what needs to happen just doesn’t get done.
It wasn’t until some months ago, when I heard the phrase “Done is better than perfect” that I realized that as long as I’m making progress and getting things done, it’s MUCH, MUCH BETTER than trying to do things “perfectly” and have them wait on the proverbial shelf until I felt ready to make it perfect.
It helped me to realize that as long as I’m doing things to the best of my ability, the success or validity or impact it has will be in God’s hands, because He is the only One perfect enough to handle it.
My job is to get things DONE so that He has something to bless, to use, to multiply as He sees fit.
So for all my fellow “recovering perfectionists”, let’s inscribe this phrase into our minds: DONE IS BETTER THAN PERFECT.
When I feel the need to make things as perfect as possible - to the point that it doesn’t get done, or it robs someone else of the joy doing what I don’t have time to do - I repeat to myself DONE IS BETTER THAN PERFECT.
And you know what? So far, it really has been.
Know what else? I think it’s pretty amazing that the Lord knew there would be a whole generation of us struggling with this, and so he allowed a few verses in His holy word to help us understand that we aren’t perfect within our own efforts.
Paul wrote in Philippians 3:12-16 (NLT):
I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me.
No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead,
I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.
Let all who are spiritually mature agree on these things. If you disagree on some point, I believe God will make it plain to you.
But we must hold on to the progress we have already made.
Our job is to keep on, pressing on, getting the job done….we won’t be obtaining perfection on this side of heaven. But since we serve the One who is and always will be perfect, HE will take care of the outcome for all we do when we commit it to Him.
Our gracious Father, thank you for being such a personal and caring God that you knew there would be times we would need a reminder that while we are not perfect, you always will be. Help us to shed this standard of perfection, so that we are no longer held back by the weight of other people’s opinions or our own fears of failure. Lord, we commit to you all that we do. And we thank you for being the one to help us break the weight of perfection! In the name of the only One perfect enough to be the spotless sacrifice, your Son Jesus Christ - AMEN.
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