It’s always unfinished. And what to do about it.

Recently I was chatting with an old friend, a wise man who lives his life very closely connected to Jesus.

I was sharing with him how overwhelmed I felt at the various challenges I was facing at the time. As I reflect, it probably sounded like a self-lamenting pity party.

I realise that sometimes I really do make an idol of my busyness. I wear it as a badge of honour, on display in the hope that someone will notice and rescue me. Or affirm me.

My friend looked at me with his kind eyes and responded simply.

“Its always unfinished, isnt it?”, he replied.

“Yes”, I admitted slowly. “I guess it is.”

So, what do we do with that truth?

Because whenever truth confronts us, we have to decide what to do with it.

His words are true. The to-do list is always unfinished.

And the work that Jesus does in us is always unfinished.

We’re surrounded by unfinished business.

And we’re unfinished people.

Yet, unfinished is not the same as unredeemed. In fact, unfinished is packed with redemptive potential.

The reason I know this is because God created the heavens and earth progressively. Each day brought Him closer to completion.

And yet, during the creation process, while it was incomplete, He repeatedly saw that His incomplete creation “was good” (Genesis 1:3-31).

It was incomplete. And yet it was good.

It’s not simply OK to be incomplete. It’s not simply OK to be a work in progress.

It’s not simply OK. Its good!

As my friend with the kind eyes and I concluded our conversation that day I realised that incomplete is good.

And so, I’m making peace with the incompleteness around me and the incompleteness within me.

It’s good.