“Conceal a flaw, and the world will imagine the worst.”
-Martial (Marcus Valerius Martialis)

Think about the last time that you had to take a test. What did you study for? You probably studied for the worst, the hardest possible questions.

What about when you’re getting your hair cut or something where you don’t get to see the result until later. What are you thinking in the seconds that pass before the revelation?

I think that is why I get nervous when I approach something with an unknown variable. I assume the worst. I assume my racquetball opponent will be a lot better than me. I assume that driver in the car next to me doesn’t see me. It’s like on many levels I am trained to be a pessimist… for my own survival.

So, my mind is trying to wrap around the quote above and place it into a spiritual context. And trying really hard to think of “flaw” as an imperfection, and not a sin. How can the world imagine the worst about a flaw of mine they don’t know about? It seems to be an interesting paradox. If they know of the flaw, I can see them imagining of the worst. But, at the same time, do I where a shirt that not only says “Please be patient, God isn’t finished with me yet” but then goes on to say what He is working on… what my flaws are?

Now I’m putting myself on the spot and thinking what are my spiritual imperfections, defects. Again, I have to temper that with knowing that I am my own worst critic. What would I consider to be some imperfection that stands between me and my relationship with God? Does that imperfection have to be a sin? I don’t think so. I can be a pretty good procrastinator, but I don’t think necessarily that is a sin in and of itself. In fact I have no doubt that sometimes God uses my procrastination in good way. Like when I forget to send out a devotion first thing in the morning and something comes along later in the day and seems to hit just the right spot at just the right moment.

Okay, so maybe those words from Martial were only to get me thinking. That’s a good thing. Getting back to that quote though, and focusing on the latter part, I think one way we are called to be set apart from the world is to imagine the best in others, in situations. To imagine the potential glorification of God that exists in everything. Ourselves. Strangers. Even our enemies. If we imagine the best thing that could possibly be, we just might get something a smidgen better than what we have now. Boy, and how many ad campaigns have been built around “it doesn’t get any better than this”?

Each of us, as His children, are promised something unimaginably better than the best thing we will every experience during our time here.

Let us not confirm to the world in its tendency to imagine the worst.