perfectionism and happiness…

perfectionism destroys your happiness.

you have the constant feeling that you never quite measure up. you go through life giving life your best shot and always coming up short and always feeling like, no matter how hard you try, your best is not good enough and you feel like a failure. that's depressing, discouraging. you start thinking, “what's the use?” “it's frustrating. why do i even try? if GOD demands that i be perfect, why even try?”

this is why most people avoid GOD because of their misconception of GOD. paul says in galatians 5.1 (niv), it's for freedom that CHRIST has set us free. HE set you free, not loaded you down. stand firm then and don't let yourselves be burdened again by the yoke of slavery.

everybody has a mental picture of their ideal self. it's what you really think you want to be or what you'd like everybody else to think you are. your ideal self shows up two ways: one, when you're filling out a job application. two, on your first date. you're always trying to impress people with what you think, you think everybody wants you to be. but it's not really you.

the problem is, your real self and your ideal self never really match. they start warring with each other in your life and you get under a burden.

nobody likes a nag. everybody feels like nags are a bother in life but our worst nag lives inside our skins. we subject ourselves to a relentless self judgment program. we remind ourselves of all the past failures and how we blew it. we criticize our present actions. we pressure ourselves about the future. we're always telling ourselves how we've blown it. “you'll never change.” that's perfectionism. that's the burden of trying to gain GOD's approval by being perfect.

GOD says, “that's not the way i intend you to live.” paul says, “don't be under the burden of slavery. don't go back and try to prove your worth by the law.”

just a thought from the front porch…