March 4, 2026

Progress Over Perfection

Does perfection ever hold you back from starting something new? In today's episode, Richelle Alessi opens up about the struggle between striving for perfection and embracing progress. Together, we’ll uncover how perfectionism can sometimes be a mask for deeper fears, and explore how to push past those barriers, choosing action over hesitation, and faith over fear. As Richelle Alessi shares personal experiences and wisdom from Scripture, our community is invited to reflect on where fear may be...

Does perfection ever hold you back from starting something new?

In today's episode, Richelle Alessi opens up about the struggle between striving for perfection and embracing progress. Together, we’ll uncover how perfectionism can sometimes be a mask for deeper fears, and explore how to push past those barriers, choosing action over hesitation, and faith over fear. As Richelle Alessi shares personal experiences and wisdom from Scripture, our community is invited to reflect on where fear may be stalling our own growth and how small steps can lead to big changes.

Join us for this uplifting devotional, and let’s pray together as a community for the courage to make progress and trust God with each new beginning.

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WEBVTT

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You're listening to My Morning Devotional Podcast, episode 1478.

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Today's devotional is called Progress Over Perfection.

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Hey there, we're the Alessis, a ministry family working together in our church in Miami, Florida. And if you're like us, when days get busy and to-do lists get longer, it can be hard to find devotional time. That's why we've partnered with our friend Allison to produce a 5-minute daily dose of heaven. This is the My Morning Devotional Podcast. Good morning everybody and happy Wednesday. My name is Rachelle Alessi and I hope that you are enjoying this week's devos as we continue to talk about some of our inner struggles and inconsistencies. And yesterday's devo was a little longer. I'm sorry, that one, it was just— I was just honest about what some of the things that I've had to overcome over the years, and it went a little longer. That nonverbal person went over. Tell me if that's not a miracle. That was me.

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So the Lord can do anything, I promise you.

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And I'm excited to talk about today's devotional because a lot of us might relate to this when it comes to being perfectionist and wanting things to be perfect. And I was so challenged over the years with this, and to this day I'm like, if it's not perfect is it even like worth it? And I had to learn that progress was better over perfection, and trying and figuring it out along the way was better than just being stagnant. And I even realized the root of it, and I realized it was not just perfectionism and me wanting to be perfect, because there was areas of my life that were not perfect and I didn't care. So it's like, okay, clearly there's something deeper here.

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And I'm excited to talk about it. And there's this verse in Ecclesiastes 11:4 that says, he who observes the wind will not sow, and he who regards the clouds will not reap.

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And you know, this verse is so true because I realized that sometimes in my life when I'm not acting and I'm saying it's because it's not perfect, it's maybe because there's fear involved.

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And it's crazy how perfectionism can all— sometimes, not always— be used to mask a fear.

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Because I say, I don't want to start this until it's perfect, I want it to be perfect, because maybe you have a fear of failure. Or a fear of starting it, or a fear of just doing what you're supposed to do, period.

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And a fun, um, uh, example I have for you, because I can only use personal examples here— I have many, but the most recent that I could think about was about 2 years ago. I've— since I was younger, I've always loved clothes. Me and my sisters, like, we were the girliest girls. I wasn't until like later on, but they helped me get there.

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So there's hope. But I remember that I had this desire to like start my own business, and I just needed to see where it would take me, what the business would be like.

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And finally, there was this one day where me and my husband were out on a vacation, and we had our first son. He was 6 months old, and he's now almost 3. So this was a while ago, and we're sitting down having a family meeting. It was January and we're setting out the vision for the year and he looks at me and he says, you've always wanted to do this, you've always wanted a business and you, what is it that you would like to do? And I remember not even voicing what I really wanted to do because I was so afraid that he would think it was dumb or, you know, all the things that you go through. But finally I had the courage to be like, you know, Chris, I would love to start a business with clothes. I would love to design my own. I would, I would love to create collections. I, and just having my own business, I love that, and it was a desire and I wanted to do it, but I always said right now is not the time, you know, we're really busy and we just had a baby and it wouldn't be perfect.

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And I remember after that he said, it doesn't have to be perfect, you just have to start and figure it out along the way. And I would tell him, no, you know, if I'm going to do something, it has to be done right because it's going to be my name, so it can't fail, it can't look bad, it has to be perfect. And then he would be like, who's holding you to that perfect standard? I'm not, your family isn't, the people around you will probably support you and love it. And I realized that I was making all those excuses because in reality I was just really afraid to do something that I had never done before. It was putting myself out there and doing something that people might not like, people would like, but I was viewing it through the lenses what others might have thought of it instead of me realizing, hey, if this is something that's in my heart, I should try it because I should give it a chance. It might be something that fulfills me, it might be even something the Lord uses. Why not just give it a try? But I was masking it with, I don't want to start it yet, you you know, it's not the time, it wouldn't be the right line, it wouldn't be the right branding, it wouldn't— I just, I wouldn't be able to give it my time, so it's not going to be perfect. And I had to come face to face with my fear and say, I have a fear of what others might think of it, and I have a fear of this failing really bad, and what are others going to think of me if this fails?

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And then once I faced my fear and realized that this perfectionism that I was trying to achieve was not bringing any progress. And I went 6 months without doing anything. And then he again was like, hey, are you ever going to do something? And I was like, you know, I'm just going to start. I had laid out this perfect plan of how it should have gone, and I didn't even follow that plan. I just started. And it didn't mean I just did things randomly. Of course I put time into the business. Of course I put my mind and planned and and executed plans, but it wasn't perfecting a plan. It was just doing something and not letting fear keep me from it. And guys, I'm a couple of years in, and yeah, it might not be the biggest business in the world, but I'm so happy I did it. I'm so happy that I'm still doing it. I'm so happy that random people are finding it and that the Lord is helping me grow it and make it better. And I'm not expecting it to be this massive thing, But I was like, I'm happy that I didn't let fear keep me from doing something. And when I did that, I realized I just grew bold to do other things in my life. Because when I let— what I didn't let fear be an excuse in one area, it goes in every area of your life. Because I realized right now, you know, I'm not having this conversation with this perfect— with this person because I'm waiting for the perfect time. When in reality I was just afraid to have that conversation with that person. So instead of waiting for perfection, I was like, I'm just going to make progress. The 20-mile march.

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What can I do today so tomorrow is better? Not what can I do today so it's perfect in 5 years? It's just realizing that sometimes, yes, we can be perfectionists, but don't let perfectionism be the excuse of not addressing the actual fear that you have towards something, and do not let fear keep you from doing the things that you want to do.

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And if you're not sure if it's wise to do something, seek counsel. I'm not saying act on everything you think. Seek counsel. There might be some things that are not wise for you to do right now, maybe it's wiser to do later on, but still seek the counsel to not even let fear keep you from vocalizing those things and realizing that there's a time for everything. But don't let perfectionism let fear keep you from those things because it's not worth it. I promise you, you're going to be so glad that you tried something even if it failed because it's not going to be in your mind for the rest of your life, "If I would have done it back then." Because you will never get more available, you're only going to be more busy, your family's only going to grow, you're only going to get more responsibility. So why now? Just act now, do it now, find counsel, see if it's for you to do right now, but don't let perfectionism or fear keep you from real progress in your life. So let's pray. Dear Father God, thank you so much for being with us. Thank you for giving us desires and dreams for us to act on. And I just pray, Father, that if there's any fears in our lives that are keeping us from entering and continuing what you have for us, that you will help us recognize those things, because you do not want us walking us in fear and letting us not fulfill the plans you have for our lives, Father. You did not give us a spirit of fear, Father. You gave us a spirit of a sound mind, which means we can operate in wisdom and we can do everything that we need to do because you, Holy Spirit, are with us and you give us the counsel, you give us the strength to do these things. So we're not going to let fear or perfectionism keep us from making progress every single day into the life that you called us to have. In Jesus' name I pray, amen. So there you have it, your 5-minute daily dose of heaven. Thank you so much for tuning in today. We pray these devotionals empower you to take on your day. If you found value in this devotional, share it with a friend, leave a comment or review for us on the app you're using right now.

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Until tomorrow, we pray that your latte is strong, but your love for Jesus is stronger.