Excellence
...you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, that you may proclaim the excellence of him who called you...
Excellence. It is an attitude. It is an approach to life. It requires a vigilance, a concern, an awareness. There is a difference between opulence and excellence. Opulence is accomplished through lots of money and the display of having it. It can be opulent, but gaudy and tasteless. It can be over the top; yet offensive to the senses. Excellence, on the other hand, can be accomplished with any income, any place in life. It has the attitude of doing the best with what you have and presenting it in that fashion.
I have been in homes that are poor. You are served with honor and presented their best. In one place, it was a white, plastic table cover and a fish. In another, it was a young lady waiting the tables, hovering around everyone making sure we enjoyed the greens that came from a peanut plant and the chicken and the warm coke. It was expressed in a well swept dirt floor and cots made neatly and children clean in the midst of dust and grime.
Excellence was expressed with tears and hair wiping the dirt from the feet of the master; it was the cry of a doubting man declaring “my Lord and My God.” It is the giving of the best you have, sharing your life in quality.
The attitude has to be developed from gratitude. How often do we see children with much disregard for the sacrifice that parents make to provide. They are given things that cost a lot and in a matter of hours, they are bored with it and never play or use it again. Children walking around with $800 iPhones and iPads, and computers worth thousands and clothes from designers, costly. Yet, go to their room and the designer clothes are thrown on the floor, games strewn, devices scratched and broken. Adults who wanted the best cars, neglect them, never wash them, allow them to deteriorate at a rapid rate, or they buy houses that they will not keep up. Ingratitude and a sense of entitlement leads to a lack of excellence.
Ingratitude and a lack of excellence show themselves in many ways. You walk past stuff that needs done expecting someone else to do it. The public does it all the time, throwing paper down, littering, expecting someone else to clean up. It happens in homes with adults and kids, leave the dishes, mom will do them. Throw the clothes on the floor, mom will pick them up. Don’t fix the little problem, dad will do it. It is always someone else’s job.
The excellent attitude takes ownership and cares. They care when there is an issue. They want things to be presentable and pleasant. They are not cheap, giving leftovers. They may look for a bargain, but they are not settling for poor quality. Excellence says something about you, your business, your church, your life. I always want to hire someone who takes pride in their work, excellence.
Our church is becoming a house of excellence. The Lord deserves our best.
