Perfection?

The Truth about Christianity
This article challenges the misconception that Christianity and perfection are somehow linked.

By Sarah Hooper
Senior Staff Writer

“He who thinks that he is finished is finished. Those who think they have arrived have lost their way. Those who think they have reached their goal have missed it. Those who think they are saints are demons.” (Henri Nouwen, The Genesee Diary)

As a little girl, I didn’t believe in impracticable things, at least not for long. I saw the world in small increments and, unlike other kids my age, the impossible seemed impossible to me. Everyone talks about their view of God as a child, but I didn’t really know God.

Make it personal; It’s about you and God!

Photo courtesy of www.holyghostonline.com

My Nana, my great-grandmother was the first person to talk to me about God and to take me to church. I was eight years old. Her impact wasn’t from the things she told me about God or the church she brought me to; it was who she was. Looking back, she seemed different from the rest of my family,having been the only Christian.

It was a span of nine years until I went to church again. My Nana died and any hope she had in me breaking the generational curses in my family seemed to have gone with her. God and the whole idea of being a Christian appeared unattainable to me; so when I walked into church again at 17 years old I felt completely out of place. I was a colossal screw up and my background wasn’t filled with Sunday school and youth groups. As these thoughts multiplied, so did my feelings of inadequacy.

If these people only knew who I really was, what I come from, and what I’ve done. What was I thinking coming here? My sins wouldn’t even compare to theirs. Four years later, I now know I was wrong. What separates Christians isn’t sin: it’s repentance.

Romans 5:12 says, “For all have sinned and fall short.” Therefore, the connection between Christianity and perfection is a myth. The belief that once you except God in your life you never make mistakes again is untrue. Becoming a Christian doesn’t mean you stop being human or suddenly have it all figured out. This fallacy is what made me feel insufficient and what I think separates people from God in general.

Two years ago, my faith lead me to do something that I alone would have lacked the courage to do; After 19 years of silence I wrote my father a letter and initiated contact. Two years later, I can barely remember a time when he was gone. That transformation revealed to me the power of prayer.

This past year has been the biggest test of my faith since I’ve become a Christian. Now I am forced to figure out what Christianity means in my life.

Someone told me once that relationships are always in constant motion, always moving, whether it’s forward or backward. A relationship with God is no different.

I think for so long I only saw what was above the surface. However, accepting God isn’t about image, it’s about relationships, a relationship with him. Therefore, your childhood, your past mistakes, even your future ones, are not enough of a reason to not know him and they don’t make you different. Your relationship with God will never be perfect, because nothing is, but it will flourish.

My ability to make colossal mistakes still creeps up on me. The little girl who couldn’t look ahead is still there and because I had no picture of God as a child sometimes he feels unattainable. However, the realist in me knows that when I was 17 years old my life changed forever.