Emily Ley - Grace, Not Perfection for Young Readers: Believing Youre Enough in a World of Impossible Expectations

Grace, Not Perfection for Young Readers

2020 by Emily Ley

Tommy Nelson, PO Box 141000, Nashville, TN 37214

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Published in Nashville, Tennessee, by Tommy Nelson. Tommy Nelson is an imprint of Thomas Nelson. Thomas Nelson is a registered trademark of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Inc.

Published in association with Folio Literary Management LLC, 630 Ninth Avenue, Suite 1101, New York, New York 10036.

The writer is represented by Cyle Young of C.Y.L.E. (Cyle Young Literary Elite, LLC), a literary agency.

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Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com. The NIV and New International Version are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.

Scripture quotations marked NCV are taken from the New Century Version. 2005 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

ISBN 978-1-4002-1994-0 (audio)

ISBN 978-1-4002-1990-2 (eBook)

Epub Edition June 2020 9781400219902

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file.

ISBN 978-1-4002-2001-4

Adapted by Tama Fortner

Unless otherwise noted, photography Ashley Cochrane Photography.

Images on Stocksy.

Printed in China

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Mfr: DSC / Shenzhen, China / July 2020 / PO #9586533

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Ebook Instructions

In this ebook edition, please use your devices note-taking function to record your thoughts wherever you see the bracketed instructions [Your Notes]. Use your devices highlighting function to record your response whenever you are asked to checkmark, circle, underline, or otherwise indicate your answer(s).

To Brady, Tyler, and Caroline

be still and know.

You are deeply loved just as you are.

CONTENTS

I M SO GLAD MY BOOK FOUND ITS WAY INTO YOUR hands. I can imagine all the things that youre trying to do. After all, I was once your age. This is a time in your life when youre learning, changing, growingnot only in your body but in your mind and heart and the way you look at the world. Its really exciting!

I bet you feel like youre already juggling so many activities and responsibilities. Some days you probably feel like youre running round and round on a hamster wheelgoing as fast as you can, trying to do it all, but feeling like youre getting nowhere. Its an exhausting place to be. I understand. I lived it when I was your age, and Im still living it. My activities and responsibilities have changed a bit as Ive gotten married, had children of my own, and started a business. But trust me, there are days when I still find myself facing that hamster wheel.

I know how fast and overwhelming life can be when you want it all and you want to do it all perfectly. I know those aches of your heart. You are probably being pulled in ten different directions, and you might be searching for a little relief. I want to show you how to let go of this whole idea that you have to be perfect in order to be somebody. And I want to show you how to give yourself some grace.

Lets pretend were having a chat while sharing a sundae at your favorite ice cream shop. Ill share my journey with you and give you some tips Ive learned along the way. But this book isnt about me. This book is about you. Its about discovering who you really are and what you really want from this amazing life youve been given. I am so honored to share my journey with you. Its not a perfect oneno ones is. But looking back, I can see God working through every failure and every triumph to create a journey full of joy and peace.

As a designer, I am very concerned with image and making sure everything looks perfect. And I know that habit spills over into my life when I get home. I know what the chase to have it all together does to a girl who has big dreams and simply wants to be the best she can be. And Ive learned (by falling on my face quite a few times) that being perfect isnt really all its cracked up to be. Real lifewith all its imperfectionsfeels so much better.

Throughout these pages, well explore what it means to give grace to yourself and grace to the people in your life. Together, well take a look at steps you can take to set yourself free from chasing perfection. Well walk through some checklists, questions, and tips for getting things done. Well dig into the struggles we all face as we try to be our best and make everyone happy. And lastly, well explore what it means to discover your true callingwho God created you to be. Together, lets figure out how you can be your best, most real, most joyful self. In a world that expects us to be perfect all the time, you can find something better: you can find grace.

S OMEWHERE ALONG THE WAY, WE GOT THIS IDEA THAT we have to be perfect. That we arent good enough just the way we are. We arent pretty enough, talented enough, or popular enough.

Whether through social media, YouTube, the movies, or other people, weve allowed someone else to tell us who and what and how we should be. That we should be, in a word, perfect. We take all the best moments of other peoples lives and mash them together to create this imageand then we spend our days trying to live up to that perfect image. We tell ourselves, If Im perfect, Ill be good enough. If Im perfect, Ill fit in. If Im perfect, Ill finally make everyone happy. The trouble is that perfection isnt possible.

Every outfit and every activity is held up for inspection: Is it picture-perfect? Is it Instagram-worthy? We measure our worth by the size of our jeans. And busyness? Well, thats just the norm. We run from activity to activity on too little sleep. If were not doing everything, then were not doing enough. At least thats what we tell ourselves. So we try to do it all: We make the grades and make the team. We text and Snapchat. We try out and sign up. We overload ourselves, overcommit our time, overwork our minds and bodies, and end up overwhelmed. We try to make everyone happyexcept maybe ourselves. And while chasing perfection may (or may not!) earn us lots of likes and friends, it also leaves us feeling empty, alone, and just plain not good enough.