O.K. here’s the deal…before you read this I want you to know that I still struggle with the topic I am about to discuss and I have no problem being transparent about that. When I get hit with lots of questions from my clients at once and all about the same issue, I know I’m supposed to write about it. So here it goes…I hope you will allow me to share a little bit of my story, glean what you can, and apply it to your own life.
I’m not claiming to have all the answers but I do have the where with all to pay attention and learn from my mistakes. And when it comes to this subject of Grace…let’s just say I have failed miserably. Feel better? Good. So in reading this, please know that I am writing to myself too. We’re in this thing together.
The subject of Grace seems to elude us all. We don’t understand what it means or how to operate in it. How do I give others grace? How do I give myself grace? How was I given grace? On and on it goes. As an avid researcher and observer of the female species, I can tell you one thing; the enemy has women confused on the subject. We either give into the habit of making excuses and justifying our disobedience or we are so hard on ourselves that there is zero grace for failures or imperfections.
I invite you into the middle… into the process of discovering the real meaning of Grace. Grace isn’t an invitation to sin or an excuse for failure. Rather, it’s a covering by God that when you do fail (which you will) he is right there to pick you up and EMPOWER you to go where you need to go and do what you need to do with excellence.
EXCELLENCE is the word. Not perfection. Trust me friend there is a HUGE difference between the two. Excellence is doing your best with what you’ve got. Perfection is a lie and a trap from the enemy to keep you in bondage. Perfection comes when we get to heaven. Life is about doing our best to be transformed into that perfect image until we get there while. It’s about letting God perfect our imperfections. That’s what Grace is.
Grace is the empowerment he gives us to let imperfect people carry out his perfect plans.
As women, we are fed this ideal of perfection. This coveting of our friends’ perfect lives on social media and in magazines. So we get so upset and kick ourselves when we aren’t immediately successful or learn something and do it perfectly the first couple of times. I see this play out physically with my clients in the gym. Women get totally defeated when they can’t do a burpee (even though they have never done one in their whole life) or struggle with squatting or learning the proper kettle bell swing. They focus only on what they can’t do instead of giving themselves grace and an opportunity to get better over time through that empowerment.
This ungiving of grace is the very thing that keeps many from even trying. They can’t give themselves enough grace to fail so they never do anything or keep repeating the same vicious cycle.
It plays out everywhere else too. Home life, work life, social life. If there’s no room for grace then there’s no room for failure. If there’s no room for failure then there’s no room for growth. It’s through failure that you learn and get better. So stop beating yourself up if you aren’t perfect at training yet.
I can tell you this is a huge struggle with me with my Olympic lifting. I want to be the best so I can train my clients in the best methods possible and I get frustrated with all the little tweaks I constantly have to make. I want to “get it” and get it RIGHT NOW. If I don’t give myself grace and just simply do my best then my whole lift is off.
So give yourself grace. When you first give yourself grace then you can give it to others.
Stay confessed up to date. Let God make and mold you. Freely take his grace to empower you to excellence…let go of perfection.
Me and you both
#RISEUP
Lindsey Nadler
Get real talk, no B.S. business advice on creating a business doing what you love.