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6 Seek the Lord while he may be found; call to him while he is near. 7 Let the wicked one abandon his way and the sinful one his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, so he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will freely forgive. 8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, and your ways are not my ways.” This is the Lord’s declaration. 9 “For as heaven is higher than earth, so my ways are higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10 For just as rain and snow fall from heaven and do not return there without saturating the earth and making it germinate and sprout, and providing seed to sow and food to eat, 11 so my word that comes from my mouth will not return to me empty, but it will accomplish what I please and will prosper in what I send it to do.”
ISAIAH 55:6-11 CSB
God does not require perfectionism.
But, it’s interesting how we allow perfectionism to ruin our time studying the Word of God. We make rules about the environment we have to set. The amount of time that we have to devote to reading and a whole host of other stipulations. We allow being perfect to make us feel inadequate when our study time looks nothing like we envisioned OR we fail to even start because we’re paralyzed.
Perfectionism is rooted in fear. It’s this fear of not being good enough. It rears its head whenever we feel inadequate for the task at hand. However, when we truly embrace the gospel, it shuts out fear (1 John 4:18). We understand that we are limited BUT GOD. God’s grace and mercy and love cover that shortcoming. When our souls truly embrace that truth, we can fearlessly approach whatever God has called us to do, even study the Bible.
God just wants us to seek Him.
Yes, God requires a contrite heart and a willing spirit, but not perfectionism. When you approach your Bible study with a posture of humility and eagerness, you will find life to be more fruitful and the revelations so much deeper. Don’t allow perfectionism to place stipulations on dwelling in the Bible. God will use your study time to ensure that His word does not return void. Just keep coming back, just as you are.
Perfectionism, Not required.
REFLECT – Has perfectionism impacted your ability to walk fearlessly?
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The passage illustrates the importance of being a beacon of light in dim, dark places, as guided by Luke 11:33-36. One must not let comfort lead to dulled awareness, but instead consciously illuminate one’s environment. It urges self-reflection on how one’s personal light can lead others towards embracing Jesus.
The Lord’s Prayer 11 Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” 2 And he said to them, “When you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. 3 Give us each day our daily bread, 4 and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone
The Beatitudes 20 And He raised His eyes toward His disciples and began saying, “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. 21 Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. 22 Blessed are you when the people hate you, and when they exclude you, and insult you, and scorn your
I have been lost a time or two. Usually, because I got distracted and wandered off the intended path. Whatever sparked my interest was enough to cause me to lose sight of my intended destination. In this passage, we find Jesus as a child, so focused on His Father’s business that he wanders off from his parents. In my own life, I’ve found that I’m not prone to wander towards my father’s business….but away from it.
If you or someone close to you is in need, we would be honored to lift you up in prayer. We believe in the power of prayer to bring peace, comfort, and reassurance during times of hardship. Our community is ready to join together and pray as we trust in God’s love and unending grace.
