I admit it. I am a recovering perfectionist. Within me lies a deep desire to always dot every i and cross every t. It has been said of me that I could nail jello to a tree. Through the years I have made much progress, but at times, I backslide. I get the 10 lb. hammer out and start pounding every millimeter of that jello. I’m a work in progress.

As many of you know, my husband and I have started an online retail business. I absolutely love what we do. We find treasures and sell them. We love bringing joy to people. What makes us happiest is making our customers happy.

As I ship items, I pray for the person receiving it. I send a thank you note with scripture. I strive to do this business as the Lord would want me to, to treat people the way I want to be treated. As we source for items, I have had many opportunities to share my faith and encourage people. You can make any job a ministry if you just put your heart into it.

Colossians 3:23-24 says, ”Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.

Well, now about the perfectionist part. I worked hard to reach Top Rated Seller status with Ebay. This was no small feat. However, despite my best efforts, in recent months, I have lost one item and broken another, so I had to cancel those two sales. Then I forgot to respond to a request for cancellation of an order. These three things violate the holy grail of Ebay. Now my Top Rated Seller status is in jeopardy. Yes, believe it or not, I am not perfect.

I was beating myself up pretty badly the other night. While working in the warehouse, I glanced down at my little devotion book, Grace for the Moment by Max Lucado. I realized I had forgotten to read it for that day. I picked it up. My Big, Big God had a special note waiting there for me.

The devotion was called, “Our Loving Father”. It reminded me that even though I am not perfect, He is. So it’s all good. It reminded me that even though my mistakes are written all over the wall, He loves me anyway.

I know you’re thinking these little mistakes are nothing. The Bible says love covers a multitude of sins. I am glad because that is what I really need His love the most for—my sins. As His child, I have the blessing of His love. Jesus’ red blood covers my black sin and washes me white as snow. The truth is we all need His love to cover us.

When we doubt, He loves us anyway. When we sin, He loves us anyway. When we give up, He loves us anyway. When we turn our back on Him and go our own way, He loves us anyway.

There is nothing we can do to make Him love us more. There is nothing we can do to make Him love us less.

My favorite verses of the old hymn, “The Love of God” say it best.

“Could we with ink the ocean fill and were the skies of parchment made
Were every stalk on earth a quill and every man a scribe by trade

To write the love of God above would drain the ocean dry 
Nor could the scroll contain the whole though stretched from sky to sky.

O love of God, how rich and pure! How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure, the saints’ and angels’ song!”

Dear Lord: Thank You for Your wonderful and matchless love for us. It lifts us up and carries us through whatever comes in this life.  Your love reminds us that even though we can’t do it all on our own, You will never fail us. You are steadfast and true. May we never take Your love for granted, but be focused on returning it to you and spreading it to others. Thank You for guiding us and walking with us through our journey always holding our hands and picking us up when we fall. Amen

See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; 1 John 3:1

Do you need a reminder today that you are loved? The God of the Universe loves you so much that He sent His only Son Jesus to die for you. You were fearfully and wonderfully made by His loving hands. He cares about what matters to you. He has plans to prosper you and to give you a hope and a future. You are one of a kind. His masterpiece. He wants to be a part of your every minute, a friend who sticks closer than a brother. You are never alone while He is by your side.

Please share your experiences, comments and encouragement with our group. Thank you for reading and sharing my blogpost today.

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. 1 Corinthians 13:13