Pursuing Excellence

Well, Christmas is upon us. There is a chill in the air...well, sometimes. It's so cool driving around looking at the lights decorating houses and hearing the words "Merry Christmas" all around. You can definitely sense the anticipation in everyone you meet. Very cool.

We had our first choir practice last night and I have to say I'm very excited about TNC's first ever praise choir. They sound really good and the energy from each member is contagious! You won't want to miss hearing them during our Christmas weekend services!

Last week, I mentioned a group of verses that God has been leading me to. Those verses are found in Colossians 3, verses 1-4 and 17. (You can find them here and here.) God has been impressing on my heart that, as a Christ-follower, I must pursue excellence in everything I do, regardless of how important or menial the task. So I've been thinking a lot about what excellence is and how to really pursue it without getting caught up in perfection.

I looked up the definition of excellence and came across this: the quality of being outstanding or extremely good. Some other words I found related to excellence are distinction, quality, superiority, brilliance, greatness, skill, talent, and mastery. Now, I know what you're thinking...if this is what excellence is, count me out because I don't have any of that stuff. But I believe differently. We all have these characteristics in us...there's brilliance and greatness in each of us because we have Christ in us. The Author of excellence has given me and you a unique set of talents, passions, and experiences that He wants to use, if we'd only let Him.

So how do we pursue excellence? How do we get there? Through the verses in Colossians, I came to believe in three simple things:

1. Our pursuit of excellence must start with our pursuit of God. Verses 1-4 remind us that we should set our minds on things that are above. Actually, the writer, Paul, feels so strongly about this that he says it twice in verses 1 and 2. What are the things above that we should set our minds on? See Philippians 4:8-9. If we will focus on Christ and the fact that He is our life (verse 4), our pursuit of excellence will start with the Excellent One, which is exactly where it should start.

2. Our pursuit of excellence requires that we give our best. To put it simply, we do our best with what God has given us. You may not be able to write a number one hit song, or speak eloquently, but you have specializations elsewhere. You may be a plumber, or a business executive, or a sales person, or a stay at home mom...whatever you do, God has put you there for a reason and He has given you a unique combination of talents, passions and experiences. Verse 17a says "whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus." We must live with this conviction, this burden that we are living representation of the name of the Lord Jesus.

Here is one thing that has hit home with me over the past few months. In a fallen and hurting world that is always seeking hope and love and keeps on coming up empty, God is calling out for His people to step up and influence our culture in a positive way. But how do we influence a culture that seems to reject us? I believe with all my heart that it is through doing what we do to the best of our ability. If I'm a plumber and I give my all to the job, over time that is going to gain respect from those I work with. Eventually, I will gain influence with them because they are going to watch me and wonder what is different about me. And there is my opportunity to share the incredible news of Jesus Christ with them. Think about it. All of us will be willing to listen to someone we respect. So, I hope you see how important it is to give our best with what we have.

3. Our pursuit of excellence must end with God. The movie "Facing the Giants" that came out this past October has a powerful message. It is summed up best by the new principle the coach offers his players at one point: "If we win, we praise Him. If we lose, we praise Him." It is essential that we recognize the Giver of talents, passions, and experiences. If we don't, the danger will come through pride and arrogance. We will begin to point the praise to ourselves instead of to God. Humility is an essential ingredient to pursuing excellence. Giving the credit, the praise back to God is a must.

Laura Owings has a great perspective into this. I have to say, she is one who gives her all in everything she does and I believe she has gained more influence than she could imagine. But Laura is the first to tell you it's not about her, as is evident in her blog post Eating Humble Pie. You see, she understands that this is God's and He's going to do what He wants with who He wants and she is just excited to have a part in it.

And that is the place our pursuit of excellence must come back to everytime. To God.