Begin Again

I’ve been sitting with this phrase for over a year now: Begin again.

Not just as a cute saying, but as a charge from the Lord, permission to start fresh without shame.

For a long time, I believed that starting over meant something had gone wrong. That if I didn’t get it perfect the first time, it meant I wasn’t doing it in excellence. But God has shown me that perfectionism is not the same as excellence. One is driven by fear and pride; the other is marked by a willing, obedient heart.

Perfection is a moving target. It’s flesh trying to prove something. But excellence is spiritual. It’s the spirit in which we show up and offer what we have. It’s asking, “Lord, what would You have me to do?” and doing that with clean hands and a pure heart.

Lately, I’ve been practicing saying, “Good enough,” and completing whatever it is I am doing. Not because I don’t care, but because I do. Because holding onto things in the name of perfection delays obedience. It keeps people from being blessed by what God gave me to share.

Yes, we want things done decently and in order. We do things well, not haphazardly. But excellence is not the absence of mistakes. Sometimes the mistakes help someone else realize they don’t have to be perfect either.

It’s okay to begin again.

And it’s even better to begin again with God.

There are some things I thought I was supposed to do. Truthfully, I made them up. And the Lord, in His grace, simply said: “Begin again. This time, with Me.”

So I am. With E210 Studio. With McCarty Consulting. With the projects that have been sitting on the shelf waiting for me to stop chasing perfection and just start.

No, not everything is in place. No, it’s not all tied up in a bow. But it’s good enough. And everything I am doing is unto God. He will continue to bless the works of my hands. 

I don’t know what God is calling you to begin again. Maybe it’s something you’ve tried before. Maybe it’s something you’ve thought through, but never put into action. Whatever the Lord leads you to do, do it. Not for applause. Not for performance. Just out of obedience.

Begin again, and begin with Him.