Because We Won’t Ever Be Good Enough
Lately I’ve messed up in a couple near-and-dear relationships. My actions and words cut the beautiful hearts of my loved ones as I dealt with fatigue and a life that longs to overwhelm.
And Satan wants to slap me with the Failure badge. He whispers that I’ll never be good enough.
The enemy wants to convince me that my inadequacies and shortcomings relegate me forever to the back row of good and worthy people. 
Never Good Enough
I suppose he’s right. I won’t ever be good enough. I’ll always fail my children. I’ll always fail my man.
But I’m not left there. I’m not labeled “failure.” And I’m not assigned to sit forever in the back row either.
Yes, I reacted poorly toward my husband. Yes, I overreacted to my son’s oversight. But neither make me a failure.
They make me a sinner in need of a Savior. They diagnose a sickness that needs the ultimate Healer.
They put me in a place to receive His fullness, so I can then pour it out to others.
Our failings don't make us failures. They make us sinners in need of a Savior. Click To Tweet
From the Back Row to the Front
The enemy would have us believe our inability to walk righteously on our own makes us worthless. The truth is God calls the sickest and most infirmed to Him.
He pours His worth into our worthlessness.
He offers us sinners His righteousness. No longer relegated to the back row, He welcomes us to the front to drink deeply from His well.
Jesus offers us sinners His righteousness. He welcomes us to drink deeply from His well. Click To Tweet
It’s when we finally acknowledge the desperation of our condition that we can find healing. That is when we can receive the Great Physician’s best medicine as we move to wholeness in Him.
A paralyzed man’s desperate friends were determined to get him to Jesus anyway they could. They knew he could not get well on his own. So these friends did whatever they had to (even lowering him through a roof!) to get him in the presence of the Lord to receive His blessings of forgiveness and restoration (Mark 2:1-12).
Jesus’ passed by Levi (Matthew), a lowly and sinful tax collector, and called Him to “Follow Me” (Mark 2:14).
He ate with tax collectors and sinners (Mark 2:15-16).
And when the Pharisees called Him on it, Jesus gave us all hope.
“Jesus replied to them, ‘The healthy don’t need a doctor, but the sick do. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.'” Luke 5:31
Jesus Came for the Sick, the Sinners
I need this reminder often. Maybe you do too.
I will fail. But failure doesn’t exclude me from walking in the grace of God.
Jesus came for the sick, the sinners. We would have no need for His sacrifice, His grace, if we were healthy and righteous on our own.
We will fail. But failure doesn't exclude us from walking in the grace of God. Jesus came for the sick, the sinners. Click To Tweet
Realizing our failings, that we’ll never be good enough, opens us up to receive the fullness of what a walk of grace means and what the Lord has for us. At our lowest we’re most ready to receive His greatest.
And from that place of fullness, we can then point others to the Wellspring of Life.
Thank you, Lord Jesus, for your never-ending grace, for your mercy and forgiveness, for your restoration and new life, for redeeming my failures! Thank you for entrusting those of us who are so unworthy with carrying your mantle of grace to a lost world.
Reflections: Do you feel like you’re relegated to the back row because of your failings? Is Satan trying to convince you to pin on the Failure badge? Re-read those beautiful accounts of Jesus reaching out to sinners, tax collectors, and the crippled and be encouraged that He came for those of us who mess up. Through His righteousness, we are worthy of that front row.
I am always thrilled to link up with Suzie Eller for #livefreeThursday and this week’s prompt, “from back row to front row.” Click on the image to check out the wonderful encouragement.
By His grace ≈ Julie
Find hope in your real-life struggles. We'll chase it together! I am a wife; mom of 4 (including a young adult daughter with special needs); miscarriage mom of 5; author & follower of Jesus Christ. I write, edit, speak and enjoy everything outdoors.
Oh so true!! I loved reading this!! The enemy wants us to live in a failures and be content with sitting in the back. I love the quote about our mistakes not making us a failure but the reason we have a Savior. My mom and grandmother think all Christians are perfect and we never mess up and since I live with my parents I get that thrown into my face all the time. Well aren’t you supposed to be a perfect little Christian. I’ve tried to explain to them that I am not, if I was I wouldn’t need God to walk with me every step of the way.
Your neighbor at living free. Have a blessed day!
Unfortunately, many Christians try to live up to that perfectionist mentality. It leads to depression, isolation, and frustration for them and results in a poor representation of what it means to walk in grace. I’m sorry you have to live in that oppressive environment, but I’m certain God is using you in the lives of your mother and grandmother. Blessings, Miranda.
SO TRUE!!!! I love this, Julie! I’m so thankful that my failures don’t label me a failure in my Father’s eyes! Thank you for the powerful reminder! #livefreeThursday
We’d all be lost if that were the case, Crystal! Grateful for our gracious Lord.
It is such a relief Julie to know that I don’t have to get life right. We have a savior that covers, redeems and restores our failures.
Amen! So grateful!
So timely! Although I may have shed a lot of the outward perfectionism of living after being married to a laid back husband and having 3 adventurous children I still am battling this inner perfectionist in the less tangible aspects of living. Right now I’m in the hot seat (along with my family) so to speak as we are being challenged to learn deeper the ways of living with grace within our family relationships in our home. Not something either my husband or I experienced growing up. What you wrote I can use like a mirror to see who I really am, accept and live into that reflection. Thank you for this. “Realizing our failings, that we’ll never be good enough, opens us up to receive the fullness of what a walk of grace means and what the Lord has for us. At our lowest we’re most ready to receive His greatest. “
Thank you for your openness in sharing MelAnn! I too battle some lingering “inner perfectionist.” Thank God that with Him we will ultimately be the victor.
“He ours His worth into our worthlessness” WOW! This speaks volumes to me! It is so easy to forget that he is so much better at loving and forgiving than we are. Thank you for this powerful reminder! Cindy
Needing such powerful reminders myself, Cindy! Blessings!
Julie: I was working on my blog entries this morning. I found this verse.” I have set the LORD always before me, Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken,” You are the second friend I have shared this with today. When our feet slip, we have to pray to God, get up, and start over again.
Amen! Thanks for sharing, Cecelia. Love the verse.