"You, therefore, must be perfect (growing into complete maturity of godliness in mind and character, having reached the proper height of virtue and integrity), as your heavenly Father is perfect."

We are commanded to be perfect, and what God commands, He gives a heart desire to attain. Yet, this desire to be perfect can cause a great deal of frustration.

Perfection is a process that is worked out in our lives as we go from one degree of glory to another. There are degrees of perfection. We can be almost perfect in one area, and very imperfect in others.

When we give our will to God, we have a perfect heart. But even at that point, we still have faults, weaknesses, bad habits, and imperfections.

The Lord accepts us as we are and counts us as perfect while we are on our way toward perfection.

If you have given your will to God, this is step one. You now have a perfect heart, and the process has begun.

You are not alone in your travel from glory to glory to glory. Paul said in Philippians 3:12-13 that he wanted to be perfect, but that he had not yet arrived. He pressed on to things ahead. He knew if his heart was set in the right direction (if he had a perfect heart), that was all God required.

Say This: "With God's help, I will keep pressing toward perfection. I am growing in maturity, character, integrity, and godliness."

From Life in the Word Devotional by Joyce Meyer
Excerpt permission granted by Harrison House Publishers.