There’s something in the field of research called an “operational definition”. This is a clear and articulated definition of a concept within the context it is being used, and allows researchers to be explicit about what it is they are studying. This is important because, well, words can fall short.
A study exploring the effects of ergonomic chairs on tall people, for example, must define what “tall” is because height is subjective. What is tall to one may not be tall to another. Is tall 5”8, or is tall 6”3? In order to maintain academic integrity and conduct a quality study, the researchers would need to operationally define “tall” in their context. This way the results of the study can be properly interpreted and generalized to the correct group. Otherwise, the results can be easily misconstrued. They could even cause great harm.
In regular life, though, we do not use operational definitions. We use implied ones. We can use the same word, but perceive it differently. Our world has become a game of pedantics1 where we argue in comments or make reactionary TikToks about how something said is wrong, or missing the whole picture. Sometimes these reactions are warranted.
But sometimes, I think, it is simply that the linguists have different operational definitions.
There is one concept, of course, I am thinking of here, and it is this: “you are enough”.
I have seen pastors and Christian influencers post about how the idea that we could ever be “enough” is heresy, is horrible, is wrong. They have preached against this worldly idea peddled by wellness influencers. We are never enough without God, and they speak with holy fire about it. We are dirt. We are heathens. We are nothing. You are nothing.
I have also seen people ravaged by shame because they are not, nor will they ever be, enough. They do not have the job, the partner, the house, the mental health, the confidence, the [insert whatever it is here] to be enough by the world’s standards. They’ve been told they are not enough in myriad ways, sometimes explicitly by a partner. Sometimes implicitly by the abandonment of a parent.
These are the people who need to hear they are enough. They need to see the post on Instagram that says “you are enough”. They need the viral TikTok to show up on their for you page, telling them how much they matter. They need someone to say “I love you no matter who you are”. The very thing the anti-enough react against, is sometimes the very thing someone needs.
The issue here is not who is right but, rather, the operational definition at play. Because both are correct. We are not enough. You are not enough.
And you are also everything.
You are not enough. You are limited, finite, mortal. You are emotional, too logical, illogical. You are needy. You are small. You will never be consistent in the ways you want to be. You will burden others and you will be burdened by others. The goal posts of your enoughness will always move, the proverbial carrot on the stick dangling in front of the horse.
You are also everything. You were designed atom by atom by the divine. You are a God-breathed story walking this God-breathed earth using your God-breathed hands to connect, and create, and change, and move. You were chosen to be here, created to be here. You are loved so much that God was willing to become nothing and everything for you. You are wholly worth loving, no matter what you do.
The truth is there is a healthy nothingness, an authentic sense of how small we are that leads not to shame and isolation, but to grace and connection. It is the power that is made perfect in weakness2. An upside-down humbling that leads to goodness, not self-loathing. It is an openness to our nothingness that leads us to somethingness. This is the breeding ground for peace, for compassion, for wisdom, for joy.
You are nothing but, dang, you’re everything.
An Addendum:
This thought was difficult to place in this piece, so I am adding it here. If the result of believing you are not enough leads you to shame, self-hatred, and isolation, it is bred from darkness. If believing you are not enough leads you to openness, self-compassion, and connection, it is bred from light. This can be a measuring stick, so take notice. The next time you feel “not enough”, is the result shame? Or is it grace?
A Benediction
May you, who is seen by God,
See how wholly loved you are
May you be unbound in your nothingness,
Allowing Grace to dance around you
And may Grace show you your everythingness
May you be wild and whole and free
As always, thanks for reading this edition of The Middle! Feel free to share with someone you love, or subscribe to receive next months email right to your inbox.
This is not a word but I believe it should be, so I am making it happen
This comes from 2 Corinthians 12:9 “But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.”