Do any of these things sound familiar to you?

Well, it could be better.
Why are my projects never getting done?
If I just wait for ____, it will be so much better.
Maybe I should try one more time with this.
If it is not perfect, then I basically just wasted my time.
Why does it seem like I am always working until the last minute on things?

If any of these sound familiar, I am glad to know I am not the only one.

I have always had a bit of perfectionism in me. I figured that was just how God made me. I didn’t think it was that bad of a thing. In my mind, I simply wondered why I would want to do poorly at something. Why wouldn’t I want my (insert any number of things here) to be perfect?

My eyes were recently opened to how perfectionism and procrastination are related. How did I not know this?! How have I never connected these two things before? Have I been living under a rock?! It is probably in a tab or bookmark waiting for me to read about it.

But once I heard it, I could totally see the connection. I spend so much time thinking and planning but never getting to the doing and completing part of things. My mind seems to have all sorts of excuses — waiting for better timing, waiting until I have a complete plan, waiting for this, waiting for that.

Hello procrastination. Hello perfectionism. Hello fear. You are stealing my time. You are stealing my energy. You are stealing my creativity. You are stealing my joy.

I have had one of my biggest and what I hope will be one of my best ideas for my art rolling around and growing in my heart for some time now. I have started. I have done bits and pieces, but I have yet to really just immerse myself into it and complete it. Excuses, I know. Fears, I know.

I feel it is so important, and I want it to be so beautiful and meaningful to others. But I am scared it won’t be just right, won’t be enough.

I know now it is really time for me to pursue courage and move away from all that fear.

There will never be that one perfect moment. Life will never be perfect, and I must face my imperfection. I know and God knows that I have faults, that I am not a superhuman, that I make plenty of mistakes. I do not need to be better than anyone else. He does not expect me to be perfect. I only have to use what He has given me to do what He asks of me in the best way I can without letting fear of failure get in my way.

I pray for the courage to do great work in the Lord’s eyes. I pray for the courage to be imperfect because there is no perfect.

I no longer want perfectionism to be the enemy’s way of getting in my way of doing His good work. The enemy does not want God to use us for good, but I will not let the enemy steal my joy and win.

It is not my job or your job to be perfect, and what a relief that is!

Whatever you do, do it from the heart, as something done for the Lord and not for people.
Colossians 3:23 (CSB)

God knows the heart behind our performance, behind our actions, behind our ideas and our efforts. He loves us for who we are. We don’t need to hold ourselves to our own unrealistic standards of perfection. It is stressful and exhausting striving for perfection, and that is not God’s standards. We just need to be confident in the skills He has given us to do what He’s called us to.

My work will never be mistake-free. My home will never be mistake-free. My life will never be mistake-free, but one thing I do know is that it will all be full of God’s grace and that gives me peace.

The vision He has given me for my art is worth it. Living for Christ is worth it, and being a light in this world is worth it.

Don’t let good things, important moments, and exciting opportunities pass you by because you are too busy trying to get things perfect first. You can have courage and be filled with joy, instead of fear, to go and do those things.

 

Don't let perfectionism be the enemy’s way of getting in your way of doing God's good work. -Jennifer Ueckert: Click To Tweet Leave a Comment