When Imperfections Make Room for One Another

Written by: Benjamin Suter

There’s something about failure that makes us want to disappear. Burn a meal, lose your cool in a conversation, drop the ball on a responsibility, and shame rises up fast. We retreat. We scrub dishes, bury ourselves in work, scroll endlessly on our phones, or avoid the relationships that matter the most.

We’ve been there, too.

Take a moment to watch the short film Meatloaf by Wonderhunt and see if you can relate:

In Meatloaf, Grandma Gladys has one of those moments. She misreads a family recipe and accidentally bakes a banana into the center of her famous dish. It was supposed to be another perfect Saturday meal. Instead, confusion spreads around the table. Her heart sinks. She rushes to the sink, scrubbing at pans as if the harder she works, the faster the embarrassment might wash away.

Maybe you’ve been there. Not with banana meatloaf, but with something that made you feel just as foolish. We try to hide because imperfection feels like failure. We assume if we were stronger, smarter, or holier, we wouldn’t mess up like this.

But God’s Word tells a different story. In 2 Corinthians 12:9, Paul records what he heard from the Lord:

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” (NIV)

Paul had begged God to take away a weakness. God didn’t. Instead, He reframed it: weakness wasn’t a disqualifier. It was a doorway for God to walk through.

We also hear the same assurance in Psalm 73:26:

“My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” (NIV)

Failure doesn’t have the final word. God does. His strength is not revealed in our perfection, but in our imperfection.

What if the same is true for you? What if the very places you feel most embarrassed or ashamed are the places God wants to reveal His strength?

In Meatloaf, the banana wasn’t erased from the meal. It stayed right there in the center of the moment. But so did the grace that turned awkward silence into laughter and connection.

Maybe you’re carrying something that feels like a mark of failure. The invitation today is to stop scrubbing, stop hiding, and let God’s grace meet you there.

Reflection: Think of a recent mistake or failure that made you want to hide. What would it look like to believe that God’s grace is enough, even there?

Prayer: Lord, thank You that my weaknesses don’t scare You. Thank You that Your grace is enough for me. Help me stop hiding my mistakes and instead trust You to meet me in them. Amen.