Christians Are Not Perfect, Unfortunately

It would be so much simpler if once a person accepted Christ as his/her personal savior that we would be made "perfect" in such a way that we would reflect our God "perfectly." That we would be to those we encounter here on earth a mirror image of our Lord. But Christians are not perfect and many times our reflection of our Heavenly Father is distorted because we are still growing in our faith and learning about the nature of God. Therefore, when Christ shines through us its usually through the cracks of our brokenness and humaness. Lately, I've talked to several people whose opinion of God has been warped by their encounters with people who identify themselves as christians. Unfortunately, as a result of these poor interactions they throw God out with the proverbial bathwater of religion.

Christians have such a great responsibility to reflect the true nature of God. There are so many hurting people who need God but because God falls under the heading of "religion" which they've already thrown out, they look for satisfaction from what the world has to offer, which is exactly what Satan had in mind all the time. How do we reflect the true God when we aren't perfect? The times when I felt I failed God the most by being more human than Christlike to someone, I've had to go back and ask forgiveness of the person on the receiving end. Humbling oneself has a redemptive quality that people seem to identify with and the relationship, in my experience, has been mended and usually becomes stronger.

So maybe that's the answer - learn as much as possible about the God we are to reflect, be aware of Satan's schemes, and when we mess up, mend it!