I don’t know if you have ever seen the sweaty and crabby version of me, but it isn’t pretty. I began working out with my best friend and a personal trainer this week. The entire workout I was thinking “This guy is nuts…when can I eat a cookie?” I began to think about how to get out of the next workout without looking like I was a chicken. I thought to myself, “Busy, I’ll tell him I’m busy. I’m a pastor, he will buy it.” At the end of the workout my trainer said, “Remember it doesn’t have to be perfect…you just have to keep on coming back.” I had gone through the whole workout trying to be perfect, and the whole time all he wanted was for me to be there and keep on trying.
This week I failed miserably at trying to read scripture every day. I think I got out of the pattern, and was embarrassed to get back into it. I let myself down. Somehow we all fall out of patterns of self-care, patterns of behavior, or even patterns of friendship. It’s embarrassing to admit that we didn’t do it and even harder to find the courage to try it again. But if we listen carefully we may hear the message, “You don’t have to be perfect…just keep on coming back.” I hope that you hear that at this church. None of us is perfect, we all fall short…and I think God knows that. Empowered by grace, I hope you know you can always come back to a pattern that is life-giving to you and others. I promise to cheer you on when you need it, and I ask that you do the same for me. Just keep on coming back.
Blessings,
Justin
