Monday, February 22, 2010

Aim for Perfection

Don’t settle for good enough. Aim for perfection.

The three words that title my business may seem to imply that I have “a disposition to regard anything short of perfection as unacceptable”[1]. I don’t.

I do, of course, attempt to present my best effort every time I publish an article or a blog post, but I really strive for the katartizo Paul urged of the church at Corinth. In 2 Corinthians 13:9, he prayed for their perfection, and in verse 11, he advised them to make perfection their goal. Did he want them to be flawless? No. He knew they’d make mistakes. Rather, he desired them to be complete in their faith, or to be completed by their faith in Jesus Christ.

The Greek katartizo, means to restore, put in order, mend; to make complete, equip, train, prepare, ordain; to complete thoroughly. Only by faith in Christ can I achieve these things in my life. Only by obedience to His plan can I achieve these things in my work.

I may never write a best seller. My words may affect only a few. But I believe the Lord has placed within me the desire and the abilities to accomplish His work by aiming for katartizo.

When clients seek editing assistance, I don’t expect them to produce error-free material. I do, however, expect them to work diligently to put each piece in order, to prepare each message for its task, to complete their writing thoroughly to the best of their abilities. In this way, their work will be perfected.

Today I will part with Paul’s adieu, “Finally, brothers, good-by. Aim for perfection, listen to my appeal, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you” (2 Corinthians 13:11).



[1] “Perfectionism,” Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition, Springfield, MA, 2008.

18 comments:

Bethany LaShell said...

Good reminders! Of course, I read this immediately after discovering a spelling error in the title of my latest blog post. Ugh!

Unknown said...

Thanks, Bethany! That's funny! At least you were the one who caught your mistake.

Lynnda - Passionate for the Glory of God said...

Good morning, Jodi;

Your words that, "Only by faith in Christ can I achieve these things in my life. Only by obedience to His plan can I achieve these things in my work." resonated with me.

Yes! Christ is completing His work in me - with my full participation.

Yes! I obey Him and put my thoughts in print;
only He can turn them into life-giving Words.

This kind of perfection frees me. I freeze up with any other kind.

Be blessed,

Lynnda

Sarah Coulsey said...

Happy Friday!!! I am a new follower!!

Sarah

sarahsblogoffun.blogspot.com

Unknown said...

Hi Jodi,
Thanks for the reminder to be complete in our faith in Jesus. I feel as though I'm always seeking other things to feel complete, but I already am!

And I love good grammar and writing! :o)Following you now and looking forward to reading more!
Steph

Unknown said...

Lynnda - Thanks for your reaffirming words! You are so correct that only Christ can turn our thoughts into life-giving words!

Welcome new followers! Thanks for stopping by. I hope you find inspiration here.

Unknown said...

Hi, Steph! I think we were both commenting at the same time :) Thanks for the follow and your kind words!

Unknown said...

With the Olympics front and center these days, Paul's words to Timothy about running so as to win the prize come to mind almost daily. I found your blog on FF. (I know it's already Saturday, but I got the flu and couldn't keep up later in the day yesterday.) I look forward to more of your posts. Check out Steadfast Ahoy and see what we are up to on our end of the bloging worlds.

Unknown said...

I'm glad you stopped by, even if it is Saturday! You're welcome any day! Hope you're feeling much better!

Mandee said...

Following you from Friday follow...a day late. :)

Have a great weekend!
http://raisingmy4sons.com

Kelly's Lucky You said...

I'm sitting with my cup of tea and catching up on Follow Friday. Hope your having a great weekend.

Please follow me back - I hope they'll be something interesting for you on my blog.

Kelly
www.kellysluckyyou.blogspot.com

Shelley said...

Catching up from Friday Follow...I'm your newest follower! Love for you to come visit me!

~Shelley @ Shelley's Swag

Anonymous said...

Thanks for linking up with Friday Follow! I am now your blog follower. It is a pleasure to meet ya and have a great week!

~ Lynn
http://www.middayescapades.com

Sincerely Iowa said...

A little late, but stopping by via Follow Friday. I'm your newest follower! Hope you decide to visit me also at http://sincerelyjenni.com

Unknown said...

Welcome all new followers! I'm very glad you're here. I hope you'll find posts informative and helpful.

ThinkFeminist said...

I love your blog! I am your latestfollower. You can also check out my blog at www.safehomehappymom. com , i'm sure you will like it as well.

Darcy said...

Stopped by from Friday Follow. Have a great week.

justanightowl.com

Denise Miller Holmes said...

If you aim for nothing, you'll get it. If you aim for a manuscript that is clean of errors and is written well, you'll at least get something close. It's the guy/gal that doesn't aim, the guy/gal that thinks they can put anything out there and it should be published, that will cry with disappointment. Neat how you blended the writing lesson with the spiritual.

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