I Am NOT Perfect

I've been working on a talk I'll be giving for a MOPS group this Friday. The talk is inspired by the devotion I wrote for the new NIV Mom's Devotional Bible, and has the same title: I Will NEVER be that Perfect!
Thinking about how NOT perfect I am gave me the idea to create this post. Not that I need to prove my imperfection. But I thought it would be fun to display it. *wink*

First, I'm sure you've seen the beautiful pictures of food perfect some women have posted, which highlight their culinary skills. You know - those pictures that look so lovely you can almost taste how wonderful the food is?
Well, here's my NOT perfect picture:

I grilled the pork chops and it was raining outside, so I didn't keep a very close eye on them - and they got burned. (The one pictured wasn't the worst!) I told my family it was a good thing they were thick pork chops, because it would be easy to cut off the burnt parts. They tasted great. Just didn't look very good.
If you look closely at the bread, you can see the top portion is a little gooey. The bread didn't bake all the way through. And to be honest, I knew it wasn't completely done when I took it out of the oven. But I didn't have time to wait any longer...So I just told my family to not eat that part. Problem solved! I may not be perfect, but that isn't the end of the world.

OK. On to other NOT perfect examples.
I'm sure you've seen pictures of interior decoration. Perfect Some people do a lovely job putting together wall art and other displays and then post their pictures on the internet for all the world to see. So here, for your viewing pleasure, is the wall of my guest room:

Oh, I have finally purchased some decorations to enhance that plain white wall. But they are currently sitting in bags in the corner of the room.

I am lacking in confidence for how to hang them. And I am lacking in time and energy to do anything about my missing confidence. So, for now - the decorations remain in bags.
The good news is, a plain white wall does not seem to impede the ability of guests to rest well in the bed beneath the plain-ness.

And, now, let's take a look outside.
Ever seen those beautiful pictures of someone's amazing landscaping?
Well, I am NOT perfect, and at my house there is no amazing landscaping. We have a couple areas which are nice, but nothing amazing.
And the walkway to my front door (which we don't use, anyway...) looks like this:

Kinda over-grown, pretty much un-kept, and way too green. But people feel welcome when they come over, anyway. And that's really what matters.

I hope you have enjoyed this tour of my NOT perfect-ness. Maybe you even had a laugh, or two?
But my greater desire is for you to believe and embrace the truth that we do NOT need to be perfect. And maybe, just maybe, we can learn to be comfortable enough with our imperfections that we're able to be who we are - unashamed.

Now that would be a beautiful thing!