I don’t know about you, but I find perfection in the perfectly imperfect. I love that my God is the same, and it seems He can do much more with the imperfect. For that, I am greatly thankful, because this gal is a hot mess most days and so far from perfect every day.
I hope you will bear with me and not get tired of my ramblings on about being different and unique this year, but I just find it to be a very important topic. It’s relevance provoked an entire book about differences. (It comes out on May 4th!)
During an interview for Under the Magnolias, I spoke about how boring it would be if we were all alike. God is extraordinarily creative and He makes each one of us to be different. I know ethnicities come to mind, but look deeper. Our personalities, our gifts. All different from the one standing next to us. Surely, it makes life much more interesting, doesn’t it?
So my issue, the thing that has me scratching my head in bafflement at times, why on earth is culture continuously striving to mold us to be the same? Same 00 pants size (fat chance that's gonna happen for me), same fashion style, same political beliefs, the list goes on and on.
Same can be seen in church culture, where one religion wants another one to line up to their views. And I’m all for it as long as it’s biblical and not an opinion. Oh, the line likes to blur here. And also, why not get off each other’s’ backs when our ideas or lifestyles look differently? Man, we can be hard on others. Lighten up. If you are truly concerned about someone’s beliefs not lining up with yours, pray. Seriously, don’t forget to put God first in it. I think we are all a little guilty right here. Spewing off at the mouth first and then consulting God on our self-righteous baloney later after the mess has been made.
Dave Foster told his son something I think is quite important in Under the Magnolias.
“Miss Wise comes to church for the same reason any of us do. Looking for God. I don’t care if Satan himself shows up looking, by golly he’s welcome to find God there, too.”
Can I get an amen here?!
Matthew West’s song, Truth Be Told, sums it up perfectly. It's linked below. I hope you listen to it and become more understanding that we are none perfect and that’s okay. God knows we aren’t, so don’t ever let someone else’s misguided opinion hold weight over you.
Please show yourself some grace and don’t forget to do the same for others.
Truth Be Told by Matthew West