We live in a society where mediocrity is the norm. So many
people do just as little as they have to in order to get by. They are always
looking for the easy way out. They make commitments that they can’t keep. They
are always late to work. They don’t pay their bills on time. They dress
shabbily. They have lazy and sloppy attitudes. Are you one of those employees
who arrives 5 minutes late to work and clocks out 10 minutes before close of business? Are you one of those shoppers who accidentally knocks a display of cans
to the ground and conveniently walks away from the mess, thinking it is the
responsibility of the store employees to clean up because after all, they get
paid to do it? Do you think nothing of saying little white lies throughout your
day? "But everyone lies, everyone leaves work early, everyone gossips,
everyone makes a mess and leave others to clean up. What's the big deal?"
you may protest. The road to mediocrity is wide, comfortable and paved with
compromises, lies and the refusal to do anything extra. The road to mediocrity is wide, comfortable and paved with compromises, lies and the refusal to do anything extra.
God didn’t call any of us to be just average. He doesn’t
want us to merely get by and do what everybody else is doing. He has called us
to be cut above! He has called us to stand out from the crowd, to be people of
excellence. He has called us to come up higher. A person of excellence goes the
extra mile to do what’s right. He keeps his word even when it’s difficult.
People of excellence have integrity; they pay their bills on time; they give
their employer a full day’s work; they don’t come in late, leave early, or call
in sick when they are not. When you have an excellent spirit, it shows up in
the quality of your work, and the attitude with which you do it.
God's greatest concern and search in every generation is for
people whose greatest quest is to move from average to excellence, and are
willing to pay the price systematically and delightfully. I want to challenge
you today to start making the better decision, not just the okay decision. I
want to challenge you to make the more excellent choice. Make the decision to
do what you know is the right and give it your all. I like the way an
old friend, Brother Paul puts it in his epistle to the Colossians (Chapter 3:17)
And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father. (New Living Translation)
We are called to strive for excellence in order to be the
best testimony for the Lord that we can be. People are watching to see what
kind of a difference Jesus is making in your life, and you can point others to
Him by being diligent in your tasks and being above reproach in your ethics.
Daniel exemplified this spirit during his service as a highly regarded
administrator in a secular environment. The Scripture says that "he
distinguished himself among the administrators . . . because of his exceptional
qualities" so much so that "they could find no corruption in him,
because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent" (Daniel
6:3-4).
You can run into mediocrity accidentally but you have to purpose to be excellent.
Being excellent is not about comparing yourself with others.
It is not about trying to outdo the other person. It is all about being the
best that you know you can be. When you go out each day, you should look the
best that you possibly can! When you go to do something, you should do it with
you whole heart, giving it your best effort!
To be a person of excellence, consider the following steps:
Take pride in what God has blessed you with.
No matter how small what you currently have is, take care of it! Your house may
be small, but you can keep it clean. You can mow your lawn and make sure junk
isn't piled in your front or back yard. Your car may be old, but you can take a
few minutes each day to keep it looking nice and presentable. Don’t leave it
looking like a junk yard. You may have only a few nice clothes at the moment,
but take good care of them. Take extra care of whatever God has blessed you
with at the moment! Be the one to stand out among the crowd, the one who will
be faithful in the little things. If you can take care of what you have right
now, God will bless you with something better.
Make excellent choices, even in the mundane.
When you are done with the cart from the store, don't just dump it wherever
you want in the parking lot. Make the effort and bring it back where others
carts are stacked. If you accidentally drop a blouse from a rack, don't just
walk away and pretend you didn't see it. Pick it up and put it in its rightful
place. If a cashier gives you more change than you are supposed to get, don't
pray he or she will not notice and walk away. The money is not yours. Give the
money back and don't try to fool yourself by saying God wanted you to have it.
God doesn't bless people by taking something away from another in a wrong manner. Those things
may seem small, but they are the areas where the most compromises, excuses and
justifications are made.
Be willing to pay the price for doing the right thing.
Excellence comes at a price, and it is not cheap! Be willing to pay this price.
If you are in a group where people tear others to shreds with mean-spirited
comments, walk away. If everyone in your office lies and cheats to get ahead,
don't get caught up. Be determined not to fall in that trap. You may think you
won't have a friend left, but if you are faithful in the little things, God
will reward you and bring better friends into your life. Don't be deceived: the
bad choices people make will eventually catch up with them. Doing the right
things may put you at a seeming disadvantage in the short run, but I bet it
will eventually pay out on the long run.
Treat other people's property with respect.
I
remember how I used to handle hotel facilities when I started getting the
privilege from God to stay in top class hotels. I will leave the room with things ON. “Well, I am paying a lot of money anyway, and these people
need to earn their money” I reasoned. It was not an excellent way of thinking. It is expedient we treat other people’s properties with respect. If you walk by a house, don't step on
their lawn, thinking it is all right as long as they don't see you. If a
person was gracious enough to let you borrow a book, a tool or an item, treat
the items with care and don't keep them longer than necessary. The people you
borrowed the things from may have forgotten about it, but return everything to
them.
Be committed to living a life of excellence.
Everyday, be determined to give life everything you've got. Don't cut corners.
Don't compromise. Don't lie. Don't gossip. Don't accept mediocrity. Go the
extra mile. Put in the extra effort. Do a little more than what you have to do.
Remember, you are representing God. Get rid of sloppiness, laziness and move to
a higher level. God will beam down on you and reward you beyond anything you
ever imagined.
The true goal of excellence is to do the best you can with
what you have at every moment. Jim Elliot once said, "Wherever you are, be
all there."
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