The Stories of Christmas | Using Our Messes

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose.

Romans 8:28 (NLT)

This is one of those verses that's been cross-stitched onto pillows and printed on bookmarks so many times that we can forget how radical it really is. Paul doesn't say that God causes only good things to happen. He doesn't say that everything that happens is good. He says that God causes everything – including our mistakes, our failures, our messy attempts – to work together for good.

That word "together" is important. New Testament scholar N.T. Wright points out that Paul is describing a process, not a single moment. God takes all the pieces of our lives – the good, the bad, the beautiful, and the broken – and weaves them together into something meaningful.

It's like a master chef taking whatever ingredients are available, even the ones that seem mismatched or inadequate, and creating something delicious. Or like a skilled musician who can turn a wrong note into part of a beautiful improvisation.

That's what God does with our imperfect obedience. God takes our messy attempts and weaves them into something beautiful.

As I reflect on the nine years our church has been working with the Angel Tree, I can see this promise at work. That first year was chaotic. We made mistakes. We overcomplicated things. We had a check declined at the toy store, for crying out loud.

But you know what? Those mistakes taught us what not to do. That chaos forced us to figure out better systems. That first messy year became the foundation for nine years of serving our community.

If we had waited until we had it all figured out, we would've missed helping 782 kids have a better Christmas. If we had let the fear of making mistakes keep us from starting, we would've never discovered the joy of being the hands and feet of Jesus in our community.

And here's what I've learned: God doesn't waste our messes. When we step out in faith, even when we stumble, even when things don't go according to plan, God takes those imperfect efforts and uses them. Sometimes God uses them in ways we can see right away. Sometimes we don't see the impact until years later. But God always uses them.

So we need to understand that there's a huge difference between being perfect and being faithful. Perfect means getting everything right. Faithful means showing up and trusting God with the outcome. Perfect is impossible. Faithful is doable. Perfect requires certainty. Faithful requires trust. Perfect is about us. Faithful is about God.

And God doesn't call us to be perfect. God calls us to be faithful. God calls us to show up, offer what we have, take the next step, and trust that he'll work through our imperfect efforts.

That's why Paul can confidently say that God works everything together for good. Not because everything we do is perfect, but because God is faithful to use whatever we offer him. Not because we never make mistakes, but because God can redeem even our failures. Not because we always get it right, but because God's purposes are bigger than our imperfections.

So as we end this week of reflections, I want to leave you with this encouragement: Start somewhere. Don't wait for perfect. Don't let fear of failure keep you from stepping out in faith. Don't let your weaknesses convince you that God can't use you.

Offer what you have, even when it feels inadequate. Take that first step, even when you're not sure where it will lead. Say yes to God's invitation, even when you don't feel qualified.

Prayer

God, thank you for this week's reminder that you don't need us to be perfect before you can use us. Thank you for showing us through Scripture that you've always used imperfect people doing imperfect things. Thank you for the promise that you work everything together for good, even our mistakes and messes.

Help us to release our grip on perfectionism and embrace your invitation to start somewhere. Give us the courage to take that first step, even when we're not sure where it will lead. Remind us that our first attempt doesn't have to be our best attempt—it just has to be an attempt.

This week, show us where you're calling us to serve. Reveal to us what you're inviting us to offer. And then give us the faith to say yes, imperfections and all. We trust that you'll take our small offerings and multiply them beyond what we can imagine. We trust that your grace is sufficient. We trust that your power works best in our weakness.

So here we are, Lord. Ready to start somewhere. Amen.