The Martha Stewart documentary on Netflix reminded me that in Christ, I don’t need to be perfect

I recently watched the new Netflix documentary about Martha Stewart. It’s an almost irresistible tale of triumph against adversity, a fall from grace, and a surprising comeback.

Martha Stewart, a name synonymous across America with floral drapes and hors d’oeuvres, was at the top of her game until an insider trading scandal found her in federal prison. It’s an astonishing story, more akin to a Hollywood movie script than someone’s actual life.

But it isn’t Martha’s flair for a fiesta or her skills in building an ‘omnimedia’ empire that have stayed with me in the days since I watched it. It’s her relentless pursuit of perfection.

The film opens with an overwhelming montage recalling the countless times Martha Stewart used the word ‘perfect’

The film opens with an overwhelming montage recalling the countless times Martha Stewart used the word ‘perfect’ in her many television appearances. This is a woman for whom anything less than perfection is not only unacceptable but utterly intolerable. Even in the closing footage of the film, 83-year-old Martha wanders her gorgeous and extensive gardens armed with pruning shears and a keen eye, expunging every bit of imperfection from her garden.

For women, the pressure to ‘have it all’ – and do it perfectly – is as pernicious as it was when Martha was touting her own brand of the liberated woman. It’s both subtle and woefully loud all at the same time; we see it in edited, face-tuned and filtered photos of women that bear only a passing resemblance to reality. It’s present in the trend for muted colours and minimalism. It’s there in endless content promoting hacks and tricks and tips to allow us to ‘have it all’.

I recently became a mum to two small children through adoption. Overnight, I was catapulted into ‘mum life’, and I found that the ‘perfection pressure’ increased.

I recently became a mum to two small children through adoption. Overnight, I was catapulted into ‘mum life’, and I found that the ‘perfection pressure’ increased. Terms like ‘the juggle’ told me that all of us should be able to hold every facet of our lives in perfect balance, not letting anything drop (and looking great whilst doing it). We should be able to cook up perfect presentations and the perfect gastronomic feast. We should have perfectly varnished fingernails and floorboards. Be empathetic, but not too emotional. Be leaders but still be led. Perfection is a curse, especially for women, and it’s everywhere.

Which is why it was oddly refreshing to see America’s sweetheart, the queen of the quiche, experience such a catastrophic, almost comedically enormous fall from the top of the pile to the bottom. Watch the documentary for yourself to decide whether Martha should have gone to federal prison in the first place (she shouldn’t) – but there was something so poetic about this plot twist. Not because she ‘had it coming’ (I don’t think she did) and not because, as is quoted in the documentary, ‘you always want to see Little Miss Perfect fail’ (I actually didn’t). But because it demonstrates, with razor-sharp clarity, that perfection cannot last. Perfection never does. Perfection is, unequivocally, unattainable.

And, thank goodness, the Bible says the same.

Perfection is not a condition for the gifts of peace, joy and love that come with knowing God. Perfection is not required of us in order to be loved by Jesus. What relief to know that the Bible – our manual for being human – tells us that we all fall short of perfection (Romans 3), but that’s ok. It’s ok because Jesus made it so through his own perfection and his own sacrifice. The only one whose job it is to be perfect is Jesus. What an utterly counter-cultural idea, and what a game-changer if you, like me, feel the pressure to get it all right all the time. I can take a rest in the knowledge that I’m loved, not because I meet some threshold of ‘nailing it’, but because I am God’s very precious child.

So whilst Martha’s may be a cautionary tale, a warning against chasing perfection in our lives, I am encouraged that in Christ I do not need to be perfect. ‘Not good enough’ is good enough; by his grace, Jesus will do the rest. Now I’m off to bake a tartlet.