When It Never Feels Like Enough
We were made to be perfect.
In Matthew 5:48, Jesus reminds us, “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
At first glance, this may seem unattainable and hopelessly discouraging. Most of the time, we don’t feel like we’re enough, let alone perfect. Perfection seems like an impossible standard, but Jesus would not have asked us to do anything that was not possible and in our best interest.
Maybe the deep longing for something better, for perfection, is not wrong. Maybe it’s God ordained. Maybe the bigger problem is that our desires are misplaced, and we misunderstand God’s call of perfection.
You can eat all the kale,
Lift all the weights,
Take all the trips,
Trash all that doesn’t spark joy,
Wash your face and hustle like mad,
But if you don’t rest your soul in Jesus,
You’ll never find peace or purpose.
We often look in the wrong places for something better. We direct our attention and affections toward the things of this world—the creation over the Creator. We settle for the gifts of God and forget the Giver.
When we strive to find our worth and identity in anything less than the One who made us—the One who breathes life into our lungs and keeps our hearts beating steadily—we quickly become restless and overwhelmed.
When we grapple to find significance and fulfillment apart from Christ, we live in a perpetual state of despair and discontentment. It’s simply not possible. We were made to be perfect, but we cannot achieve perfection on our own accord.
The story of Mary and Martha in the gospel of Luke reminds us of this (Luke 10:38-42). Jesus entered their home with an entourage of followers, and immediately, Martha became anxious at the thought of entertaining and hosting them. But Mary was not concerned. She sat content and inquisitive at the feet of Jesus, ready to learn from the teacher. When Martha started complaining to Jesus about Mary not helping her, Jesus gently reminded her that Mary had discovered the only one thing that was necessary, and it wouldn’t be taken from her.
What was this mysterious only one thing?
It is the rest and peace found in Jesus Christ, our perfection.
The humbling and freeing truth is that Jesus became our perfection when he died on the cross. Our redemption was blood-bought and complete. We find relief when we rest in the work of our Savior. Unlike Martha who was busy doing many things, we don’t need to earn our salvation and our righteousness. We don’t need to prove anything. We can stop the never-ending pursuit to be enough, have enough, and do enough. We can stop chasing after purpose in all the things this world has to offer.
Jesus is enough.
If you don’t feel this inner peace but believe in Jesus, you may need to ask yourself this question—do you trust him? Do you believe he is your everything? Will you lay down your personal preferences to live life as Jesus did? It’s not burdensome; it’s easy. Lay down the striving. Lay down the searching. Lay down the feelings of inadequacy and the battle with comparison. Lay down the sins that so easily trap and deceive you.
But you must trust Jesus Christ to do it.
The enemy will do everything he can to distract you. He will continue to enthrall you with lesser things. He will deceive you into thinking that perfection and peace can be found apart from Christ.
Our misunderstanding is that God never asked us to chase perfection, but to chase Jesus, who is perfection. In doing so, we become more and more like Christ. Through his Spirit and his Word, we are renewed, refined, and transformed into his likeness. In our diligent and consistent efforts to draw near to him and resist our flesh, we find peace.
We should no longer strive to become somebody—we strive to know somebody. Our Savior. Our purpose is not a plan or performance, but a continuous, deep, meaningful relationship with Christ, the Author and Perfecter of our faith.
In her simplicity, Mary understood this life-transforming truth. There was only one thing necessary and that was Jesus. And Mary was satisfied with him. She had nothing to prove.
Unfortunately, we are often like Martha. We allow our jobs, our motherhood, our weight, our income, our friendships, and our ministries to define us. But rest can only be found at the feet of Jesus. He changes everything. When we pursue him, everything else falls into place. Priorities change. Perspective shifts. Plans adjust.
You will never feel enough if you hustle and pursue all the things the world offers. You can only find peace and purpose in Christ. Are you willing to trust him?
P.S. If this message spoke to you, you will love Alisha’s new book, Chasing Perfect. It launches TODAY, and is available for purchase here, or wherever books are sold.