Limits

The character Harry in the cult film Magnum Force makes a profound statement we would do well to remember.  From memory, “every man should know his limitations”.  It is far too easy to forget mine.  It is almost too easy to overlook others, assuming that he or she can be more than they are.  Expectations are set, personally and imposed on others that extend way beyond one's abilities.  Instead of helping, nurturing, and being there for others along the way, I find myself imposing judgment, demands, and my frustrations.  It is a recipe for tearing apart community, destroying lives, and soliciting failure.  Yet it is natural.
I find myself discovering peace when I take an alternative approach.  Instead of demanding perfection, I can hear the cry of the heart when I know that “they know nothing about peace and less than nothing about justice.  They make tortuously twisted roads.  No peace for the wretch who walks down those roads!”  (Isaiah 59.8)
It does not stop with simply hearing.  In acting on the awareness, I find myself renewed and energized as I reach out to help those who in need, regardless of his or her circumstance or how much they do or do not deserve my support.
Even as my pride begins to grip my soul, after all I am doing the work of Divinity, I hear Harry's voice echoing in the back of my mind.  I am no different than those around me!  I am riddled with weakness and fears.  I am haunted and shaped by the demands of the god self.   It is an ugly image that emerges with the reality of my limitations.
You and I are never alone.  We may have limits, flaws may etch the essence of our soul, yet God knows all this and more and stands by us without reservation.  We may forget, but God's embrace is often in our lives through other members of Divinity's family.  We see them as family, friends, and the occasional stranger and angel that travel with us on our journey.  God has no limits.