A look at life and ministry.
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Perfectionism Struggle
My wife and I are both perfectionists, but in different ways. I am what they call a frustrated perfectionist. We are both aware of our tendency and continually seek God's perspective and victory.
For me as a pastor, this can be discouraging. No matter what is going well at church, I will tend to focus on areas that are not what they should be. I will focus on areas where I am falling short or where I sense failure and allow that to become my whole world. Of course, since perfection will never be achieved, it is easy to live with a sense on constant failure. I always fall short. This is good for humility, but can reach a place where it really defeats. I must continually learn that I don't have to be perfect in order to not be a complete failure. Of course, this tendency can be magnified because there are those in any church who do expect the pastor to be perfect (even if they don't realize that is what they are doing) and are very critical to any area in which a pastor fails. I and people like me, will tend to agree with these people since it reinforces our self view that over all, we are failures. As a frustrated perfectionist, once I am there, I am done. A large piece of toast.
Lord, may I have your eyes and your perspective. Help me learn the balance between proper humility and abject defeat. Help me keep my expectations for myself realistic, even when others do not. May I remember that this work is Yours, not mine. Thank you Lord for your consistent love, even in my failures.
This entry was posted by ozymandius and is filed under Living Life.
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A look at life and ministry.