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If we want a depiction of the excellence, perfection, goodness, and beauty of the character and ways of the living God, we can see it in the portrait of Christ drawn in the Gospels. “He has done everything well” (Mark 7:37). All that he does and says reflects the radiance of his incomparable attributes of holiness, truth, compassion, love, mercy, graciousness, righteousness, and faithfulness. Consider what Psalm 145 says about the quality and excellence of God and his works.
The NBA season recently started. NBA players and coaches are committed to excellence because they want to win a championship. In his book The Winner Within, Pat Riley offers some insights on the danger of compromising excellence: “Being a ‘game player’ is a fiction some people use to excuse themselves from working as hard as they should. People who think they are game players are what coaches call ‘floaters.’ They float along on a cushion of talent or sheer physical size and strength. They don’t see what all the fuss over concentration and work ethic is about—until players of lesser talent start scoring in their face, quarter after quarter, simply because they are more in tune with their game… Eventually, every team has to learn that excellence isn’t a destination. It’s a process that must be continually improved.” Kevin Durant—last season’s NBA Most Valuable Player—echoes that sentiment in the movie Thunderstruck when he says, “Hard work beats talent when talent refuses to work hard.”
If we play to people, we will simply become conformists; but if we seek to please God instead of people, we will be set apart from the crowd. That’s why Paul instructed the Colossians to pursue God’s pleasure and approval rather than trying to impress people.
God calls us to nothing less than the excellence of Christlikeness, and this becomes possible only when we walk in the power of the Spirit. May you walk with Him, as you shoot for the stars!
Only then will you approach Excellence…and fulfill your potential…