What motivates that desire for perfection? Many are seeking happiness. Others long for peace and tranquility. Others hope for acceptance.
A word used 98 times in the King James Bible, perfect often carries the idea of coming to maturity or completion. Other times, it corresponds with the notion of “blameless,” as in Deuteronomy 32:4,
“He is the Rock, his work is perfect:
for all his ways are judgment:
a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he.”
And yet how easy is it to blame God when something happens
that conflicts with our notion of perfect?
The perfect house gets hail damage; the perfect body becomes afflicted
with some unable-to-be-cured malady; the perfect life of peace and harmony is
threatened as untruths spread over the Internet or a prayer seems unanswered for years.
Yet if God is working a good work in His children (Phil.
1:6) and His work resonates as blameless, then should we not rather place ourselves
under His mighty hand in times when perfect
seems a far cry from our reality?
In the little things that disrupt a “perfectly normal
day”—like when the soup you’re taking to an ill friend spills all over the back
of your newly cleaned car or you find that you’ve accidentally locked yourself
out of the house when you’re in a dreadful hurry.
And in the bigger things—like when the faith you envisioned
a reality through prayer is still only the “substance of things hoped for” or
when that loved one continues to lie in a hospital bed after the chaos of
unpredictability, misdiagnosis, and a rise-and-fall recovery.
Life this side of Heaven brings to our attention the fact
that sin is real; the Fall has corrupted much; and nothing brings satisfaction
but Christ.
However, instead of escaping our far-from-perfect world by
distracting ourselves with beautiful Pinterest landscapes that offer lush beauty in
a world of mud and ugliness, we can turn those seeming setbacks into sources
for surrender.
The surrender of praise.
God calls that sacrifice.
Glorifying God.
Now isn’t that the actual goal of every child of God? To bring our amazing God eternal glory and
praise?
This verse tells us that a sure way to do this is by responding
to the reality God gives us with praise.
When “perfect” becomes a far dream from what we experience,
many blame God, calling Him unfair. Others
take matters into their own hands, perhaps even spreading malignity about others.
But our God receives glory from those who choose instead to
praise Him no matter what.
So what does that look like?
While this verse has riveted my
attention for over a decade, when I read it again this past month in my morning
Bible reading, I was struck with the thought that this message is one I haven’t
quite mastered. So, like the baseball
that once unfortunately drove right into my brother’s face when I connected bat
to ball back in my elementary school days, it hit me—this truth that to glorify
God means to praise Him in every uncomfortable situation that threatens “perfect” any day, week, month, or year
in any number of ways.
Praise affects my
responses to hurtful things. After
reading this verse, my spirit experienced true liberation as I asked God to
bless all those who had spoken hurtful words, believed
untruths, or made decisions that seemed to lack His wisdom. I
praised Him for His providence and the bedrock truth that He is good, no matter
how life might appear, for He says to give thanks “in all things” and “for all
things.”
I don’t quite understand it.
I know He’s not happy with sin in any of our lives but, at the
same time, He’s called me to praise.
And, by His grace strengthening me, that is what I have determined to do.
Praise affects my
natural desire for comfort. Then it
happened at other little junctures, like when I awakened after not having slept
quite long enough and felt a bit like I’d rather continue enjoying comfort than
anything else. Just like my dog who
grimaced when one of us kids stepped over him as he slept under the wood stove
in my parents’ kitchen, basking in the warmth, I too wanted to grimace at the
reality of the minutes after the wake up.
But God reminded me that praise is becoming to the upright. I can turn my clouded mind into a factory of
praise. And, with His enablement, I
obeyed Him, cherishing the tired moments as opportunities to walk by faith and
live in the reality of His strength.
Praise affects my
relationship with every person. The
attitude of praise affects every person in my life as I thank God that He
allows me to intersect pathways with this person today, this moment, this week,
or at any point during my lifetime. In
little areas—like when someone misplaces an item yet again and needs my
assistance in finding it—I can joy that God allows me to serve the people He
has created in any number of ways. I can
delight in fellowship He creates with others.
I can joy in the fact that, although others may intend to hurt me, He
loves all and cares magnificently for every person—and so can I, regardless of
their words or actions against me and others.
Praise affects my
attitude toward life. After a day is
over, I’ve often been one to analyze, looking back to see if I could
have done anything better. When I first view the past first with
praise, I come face to face with this amazing truth—every day is a good day. Even if I was slandered. Even if my church was spoken against. Even if my loved one's motives were incorrectly judged. It’s ok.
Because no matter what happens, God’s lovingkindness trumps my
life. His mercy is unchanging. His love is better than any reality that may
exist about me.
And His way, after all, is perfect.
Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee"--Psalm 63:3.
What a joyful and beautiful world we can all experience as we
choose gratitude for everything our gracious Father allows into our lives! In His perfect will, our Jehovah God, the I
Am—the God of my present tense—allows us to meet with occasional (and even ongoing) rejection and
hurt from others, prayers that seem unanswered, and setbacks on the road of life. As we experience these
challenges, He begins to grow our confidence that His grace is more than
enough.
How grateful I am to this God of Heaven Who, as my Abba
Father knows my needs, remembers I am but dust, and knows how desperately I
need His perfect perspective to infiltrate my mind and heart.
To overcome me with a spirit of wonder and thanksgiving in
the midst of situations that appear far from perfect.
So, as challenges in life arise, I can rest confidently in the
fact that His way is perfect as I offer to Him a sacrifice He longs to hear.
The sacrifice.
Of praise.
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