I Don't Ever Want to Become So Religious that I Lose My Relationship

You know since becoming a youth pastor I have decided that I am sick of hiding behind being religious. I know that it is not a religion but it is a relationship, but sometimes working inside of ministry can make you want to be "religious" not so much have a religious spirit, but live a life where you lead by example, and that is correct but sometimes it is easy to let that attempt at perfection become religious, I have realized that honesty brings change, and sometimes it takes vulnerably, sometimes it takes showing that even the person speaking has sin *gasp* but that is where grace comes into play, Jesus died on the cross for our sins, that is for past, present, and future sins, I can try to do everything in life right but there are some days that I just might stub my toe and cuss, is that wrong? technically yes, but if I try everything that I can to forget the little things and be a model person I tend to lose the connection. Recently I have had to teach on baby steps with religion sometimes things aren't easy and you can't do it all at once but how can I level with the people I minister to and how can I speak into them if I don't explain first that we all have flaws but I know a God who has put grace into play to allow me to come to Him, to swing wide the doors of His presence and step in, despite my imperfection, because you know what? HE WANTS TO HELP ME! sometimes as Christians we try so hard to hide the imperfection but I like to think of myself as a pot in His hands, everybody has cracks and imperfections, but it is harder to work them out if they are hidden in the inside it is harder to see change if the initial problem was in the inside, if Christians would just open up more and show their imperfections and come to God ready to be changed, it will be easier for things to change. We have to realize that no one is perfect, we are all going toward the goal and fighting toward the prize of meeting Him in heaven, but lets just be honest if we would just let Him step in and be our advocate then we would see the change and we could build a stronger relationship. I think of the old medieval movies when someone would save another's life they would owe them a life, by giving Him our life we have to give Him the good the bad and the ugly, and you know what, THAT'S WHAT HE WANTS, He wants to know all of us, because if we show Him all of us, He can help us to fix the problems that we have built up and the more of us we give Him and the more He molds us the more we build the relationship, but if we keep trying to hide behind the perfection of what Religion says we should be we will never find that relationship. Sometimes it is going to take us being real with ourselves and real with others to find that true burning passionate relationship with Him. it takes an honesty it takes a realness, it takes being vulnerable, I don't know about you but I never want my Religion to step in the way of my relationship, I never want to hide behind my religion if it will keep me from Him molding my life. I think about the woman who touched the hem of Jesus' garment, if she would have hid behind the law if she would have hid behind the sickness then she would have never pushed hard enough to be changed. Sometimes religion gets placed into our lives like a sickness, we believe in God we want God to move, but we hide behind the law instead of moving closer to his presence then we are not getting the idea of grace. I don't know about everyone else but I know that I never want that to become my hiding place, I would much rather find my refuge in the one who strengthens me.