Giving Yourself a Mulligan
Let’s talk about golf – specifically about mulligans. A mulligan is a second chance for a golfer to replay a stroke if he/she blundered on the prior one. If you’re a mediocre golfer like I am, then you use mulligans all the time. This got me thinking – how many times do we personally give ourselves a mulligan (or grace) in life, since life is filled with mistakes and blunders?
Giving Out Grace and Mulligans
How many times do we extend grace to ourselves? We probably extend mulligans to so many other people in our world. We understand their shortcomings. We understand that everybody makes mistakes, but for some reason, when it comes to us and our own mistakes and shortcomings, we’re the first ones to tear ourselves down.
Perfectionism Isn’t Attainable
Perfectionism is a grace killer. When we try to be perfect in everything that we’re doing, we are completely killing the word grace.
Have you ever said words like, “Oh, gosh, I wish I just could do better,” or, “If I could just be more disciplined,” or, “If I could just be more organized.” “If I was only a better mom, a better sister, a better friend,” and the list goes on.
I was recently with some friends having coffee, and, without even realizing it, we took turns dissing ourselves on our shortcomings as mothers. We were definitely not giving ourselves mulligans. We were completely shooting down grace!
Here’s the deal: if we can’t give ourselves grace, then we probably don’t truly, deep in our heart, understand the grace that we have been given.
Understanding Grace
When we don’t understand grace for ourselves, we’re probably lacking in understanding the grace that He has given us. We must realize that He picks up the slack, that He fills in the blanks, that He fills in the empty spaces that we can’t ourselves.
We’re never going to be perfect. We’re never going to be the perfect mom, the perfect friend, the perfect spouse, the perfect sibling, or the perfect anything!
Embracing Joy Instead of Perfectionism
We will never be perfect, so when we truly embrace that, it will allow us to walk through life with so much more joy. When we do this, then we are allowing Him to fill in all the spaces that we can’t.
So, whether you’re on a golf course or just trying to navigate through life with all your mistakes and blunders, remember to give yourself a mulligan or two (or a thousand!), because you’re going to need them just as much as I do!
