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| Daffodils from Daffodil Days American Cancer Society. |
You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with glad cries of deliverance. - Psalm 32:7
Lindsay Armstrong, in Feasting on the Word*, writes:
At our deepest core, to be human is not to be a sinner but to be loved. To be righteous is not to be sinless but to be forgiven and freed. To be in Christian community is not to downplay brokenness but to accept it and be transformed by the One who healed brokenness on the cross and whose name is and always has been Love.What a joy it is to know that though we are imperfect people, we are beloved children of a God whose perfect love surrounds us at all times; whose very name and nature is and always will be Love.
Let's be honest. I don't need Rethink Church to remind me that I'm "imperfect." Today's trip to buy swimsuits reminded me each time I tried on a different suit. Although I did not count, I probably tried on at least fifteen swimsuits. Actually, it might be a larger number since I was able to walk away with three that will work. Unlike Goldilocks, I was not able to find any that were "just right." Well, I did find one that was pretty close, but it was a $90 bikini. No way!
At one point, as I was trying on suits, wallowing in my self-loathing, I could hear a girl and her mom across the hall. The girls "hiding place" was the changing room. She, too, I imagine, was trying on swimsuits. Several times the mother tried to "preserve [her] from trouble; [and] surround [her] with glad cries of deliverance." She kept asking her daughter if there was anything she would like her to see. The daughter's reply was always a one word, "No." The mom asks other understanding and loving questions as well as comments, but the answers were always one word. I could feel the frustration of the daughter (especially since I was feeling the same thing) while I could also feel the mom wanting to make it easier for her daughter. It's not only my body that's imperfect. Part of me, the judgmental part, wanted to see the girl and judge for myself if she was going to be able to find the perfect suit.
Although I am an imperfect person, I do feel surrounded (most times) by the love of friends, family, and of course the Holy One. Actually, I feel solace in the fact that I (and everyone else) am an imperfect person. After all, it's our imperfectness that binds us together. It also gives us the opportunity to reach out and help each other.
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