I was recently listening to a sermon on the command to love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. No big deal. Super simple, right?!? Surely as a woman who is approaching her fourth decade of life, is well educated, has known and loved Jesus her entire life, has been a wife for over fifteen years, is a mother of four children, and has been afforded countless opportunities and privileges throughout her life, I should be a master at executing this simple summary of the Law.

But nope.

Not in the least!

Not to mention that the second summary of the law, love your neighbor as yourself, is much like the first and just as essential to leading a wholehearted life.

Help me, Jesus!

And so He does.

Day in and day out I am assured that even in the midst of my “I’m going to lose my ever loving mind” and “for the love of all things holy” and “could you people just be sane and reasonable” and “so help me” moments of being my messy self, I am fully loved and fully known by the One who can and DID keep these two greatest commands. And in so doing He secured the victory and gifted me the title of “Daughter of the King.”

Now I am free to go about my day in grace-fueled effort to take both the mundane (read: laundry, dishes, laundry, cleaning, laundry, cooking, laundry, caravanning, laundry, and on and on ad nauseam) and magical (read: making memories, building friendships, exploring new places, taking simple and grand adventures, laughing, playing, and the like) aspects of being a woman, wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend, and coach and repurpose them toward bringing God glory AND enjoying Him.

Therefore, even in the midst of chaos, failures, shortcomings, insecurities, struggles, and stress . . . all. the. things.

I am free to rest in the work.

I am free to fail forward.

I am free to focus on progress and not perfection.

There is much freedom to be found in this sweet gift of life from AND in the One who calls me to love Him and to love others well. And even when my love is imperfect, His is always perfect.