Grace for the Imperfect

Thursday, August 24

Grace For The Imperfect
By: Lori Ennis

 “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:23
 
Can I be honest?
I’m not perfect.

I bet you aren’t either.
Just like the Bible says, we’ve all fallen short, and if you’re like me, you do so fairly regularly. Sigh.

Sometimes life feels like hiking on a mountain trail—the view at the top might be beautiful, and you know how to get there, but actually walking it? Lots of twists and turns as we imperfect people interact with one another.
 
So if you’re like me, you’ve probably been disappointed by someone you didn’t think you would be…and you may likely have even said something like, ‘That’s not very Jesus-like,’ as you stew over their actions. Maybe they gossiped or shared something you didn’t want them to. Maybe they weren’t there when you needed them to be because it was hard. Maybe you expected better of them, and their humanity came through. We’re all probably guilty of expecting that someone shouldn’t be messing up the way they are if they’re a Christian.


But here's the truth to remember: We're all human. Every single one of us. As much as we strive to follow Jesus and yearn to be Christ-like, we have moments when our humanness shines right through. Like I said, mine does regularly.


In Romans, Paul doesn't exclude the people leading worship on Sundays, or those leading the small groups, or even the ones who seem like they’ve got it all together. And it surely doesn’t exclude you and me.
 
And you know what's beautiful? Paul gives us the rest of the story when he adds, “…and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”
 
Grace.
 
That’s the keyword. As we give grace to ourselves for our mess-ups, we're called to offer that same measure of grace to others. It doesn't mean excusing wrongs or letting things slide without addressing them, but it does mean understanding that we are all working out our salvation, growing, and learning daily.
 
So, remember the mountain trail the next time that pang hits when someone lets you down. We're all hiking it together. Some of us might trip on a stone; others might pause to catch their breath. But with grace as our guiding behavior, we'll help each other up and keep moving forward, eyes fixed on Jesus.