Summary: THE PERFECTIONISM CURSE [FAITH EPISODE]<br> PODCAST #354<br> <br> THOUGHT OF THE WEEK:<br> Perfectionism isn't an advantage, it's a curse.<br> <br> We can't create our own perfect worlds.<br> We fall short.<br> We need God.<br> We are loved, without performance.<br> We can't do anything to make God love us more or to love us less.<br> <br> Perfectionism is prideful, it is boastful, it is based on performance and proving something. It is pressure-based, and we were created for peace and fulfillment.<br> <br> VERSE OF THE WEEK:<br> For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.<br> Ephesians 2:8-9<br> <br> <br> <br> PRAYER OF THE WEEK:<br> Father, we worship You for the way you wired us and made us, each so uniquely and intricately. We thank you for the complex workings of our personalities and the fusion of nature and nurture that have created the way we think and we confess that our thinking is sinful, flawed and broken. We ask that you rewire our brain. Unroot that which is a stronghold and turn our weaknesses into strengths, not because of anything we have done, but because of You.<br> <br> Forgive us for our desire for control and power. Forgive us for trying to earn love, earn worth and earn our right to be loved by you. How contradictory it is to your nature to earn something that you give so generously. You are love. We are loved. Always, and we confess our fears, our doubts and our insecurities to you. Our lack of belief and understanding of your nature has perverted our thoughts in a way that we struggle to know just how perfectly you love us. Thank you that there is nothing we can do to make you love us more, and nothing we can do to make you love us less. Help us understand this truth that we might walk boldly and freely in peace and love in a way that our souls crave and yearn for.<br> <br> Coat our lives with a peace that surpasses all understanding, and deepen our ability to understand that You reign. You have all things in your control and we have the great privilege to walk in joy so abundant that it is uncommon. Make our faith bold and our lives brighter that we might be examples of the life of overflow and fulfillment that you have offered not just to us, but to all those who submit themselves humbly before you and are washed by the blood of the lamb of Jesus Christ. Though we have wasted years of our lives trying to earn our own redemption, we know our efforts are futile and now, more than ever we need Your forgiveness, Your rescue, Your power, Your peace, Your love. Thank you for being everything we need. Thank you that in you, we shall not want and we have nothing we could ever need. Equip us this week with a divine blessing to truly delight in our walk through our days with lightness, joy, freedom and the carefree wonder of a child.<br> <br> In Jesus's Name we pray, Amen
