Assets Hidden in Faults

Last week I spent six hours researching the best blender to buy. I read reviews, compared specs, made a spreadsheet. My husband said, "It's just a blender. Pick one." But I couldn't. This is how I am with everything—obsessive, unable to let go until I've examined every angle. It drives people crazy.

Yesterday my sponsor asked: "What if there's an asset hidden in that fault?" I stared at her. My obsessiveness is exhausting. How could it be an asset? She said, "That same quality that makes you research blenders for six hours is what made you stick with this program when most people quit. You don't give up. You don't do things halfway. That's not a fault—that's commitment when it's pointed in the right direction."

I'd never seen it that way. The trait that makes me insufferable about small decisions also keeps me showing up to meetings even when I don't want to. Maybe God isn't trying to remove my intensity. Maybe God is trying to redirect it—from obsessing over things that don't matter to dedicating myself to things that do.

I can look at my main character defect and ask: What asset might be hidden in this fault? My controlling might hide leadership. My people-pleasing might hide genuine care. I can look at my faults to find the potential hidden asset. Then I can ask God to refine and redirect. Remove what's harmful and develop what's good. Transform rather than obliterate.