Close enough

“Close enough”

     I have this big bay window in our front room. Finding curtains for this thing was a challenge, but years ago, after perusing JCPenny catalogs (pre-internet days) I came up with this:

     However, I could not afford the curved curtain rod that I needed. So I busted out my creative energy and gently bent straight rods to fit this curve. I hate taking them down to wash because it is such a pain to hang them back up, and it requires two people. But when I was decorating for Christmas I noticed that they needed washed so down they came, washed they were, and my dear hubby (who made fun of me for having to stand on a stool when he could just reach up) helped me put them back up. Then I had to readjust the tie-backs and the tops so that it all was balanced.

Because, yes I need balance.

     But as I worked on getting those curtains perfectly spaced I remembered one of my favorite phrases, “Close enough.” I learned it from my dad. A carpenter. He once told me that there are many things in carpentry that do require perfection (finish work, plumbing, electricity, etc.), but there are some things for which “close enough” works well. I've discovered that this phrase is appropriate for other aspects of life, too.

Like, folding fitted sheets.

     Once upon a camp-time, I chose the word “excellence” as the yearly theme for the year-round staff. We challenged each other to strive for excellence in every task we did at camp, including how we lived our faith. The verse for this theme was, “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Mt 5:48.

     One day during our weekly Bible study we had a discussion about perfection versus excellence. Excellence means setting a high standard for yourself in everything you do and working towards doing the best that you can. Perfection means being free from flaw or defect. Excellence is the process by which one may achieve perfection. However, it was noted, perfection is often unachievable, daunting, often frustrating, and can cause someone to not even begin a task. Why would Jesus say that we have to be perfect LIKE GOD?! Is that not IMPOSSIBLE?

     Look at this verse in context. Jesus was talking about loving your enemies. Be perfect in love. The Greek word for perfect means “brought to its end, finished; wanting nothing necessary to completeness.” Love like the Father. Love like the Son. Love like that is only possible through the power of the Holy Spirit.

     Paul’s often left off introduction to the “love chapter,” 1 Cor 13, is this:

 “And yet I will show you the most excellent way.” 1 Cr 12:31b.

     The Greek word for excellent means “a throwing beyond.” Paul is saying, "Set this high standard for yourself; go beyond what is considered normal and strive for the already finished perfect love of God!"

     No, I cannot achieve perfection in love on my own. "Close enough" does not apply to loving others. But by striving for excellence in all things (1 Cor 13), I have set my feet on the path of the Father’s already complete and finished perfect love of Christ. The only way to achieve perfection in loving others, especially those who may be my enemies, is by submitting to the power of the Holy Spirit. In doing so, I have already tapped into the finished and complete, perfect, self-giving love of the Father.  

For my spiritual life the most excellent phrase, "Close to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit" is the epitome of perfection.