Striving for Excellence

Good morning! I hope your weekend was relaxing and that you have hit the pavement this morning ready to run with excellence.

This morning I want to talk to you about striving for excellence. In high school I was, for lack of a better term, a professional slacker. I graduated high school with an underwhelming 2.86 GPA, even though I tested out on the top end of my college entrance exams. The greatest barrier to my success was my attitude. I had a sharp mind and all of the potential in the world, but I wasn’t interested in excellence. I was more interested in doing just enough to get by.

You’ve known people like that haven’t you? Some of you are also proud graduates of the school of “just enough.” Today I want to challenge you with this verse from Galatians:

Galatians 6:4 (NLT)
Be sure to do what you should, for then you will enjoy the personal satisfaction of having done your work well, and you won't need to compare yourself to anyone else.

Excellence is a core value that comes from within. It is a desire to do more than “just enough.” Let me give you an example that I’m sure most of us can relate to. You go to your local retail outlet and after standing in line for 10 minutes at the checkout counter it is finally your turn. Generally at this point we will encounter one of two people. The first person considers their work to simply be a “job.” They are more interested in getting their regularly scheduled break than in doing the best job possible. They don’t greet you, they don’t make eye contact and they treat you like you’re an inconvenience. The second person is a person who absolutely loves what they do. They find a deep sense of purpose and meaning in their work. This person greets you with a smile, they look you in the eye, and they carry on a conversation with you and thank you for your business when the transaction is done.

I think most of us would agree that we would rather deal with the second person. They have made excellence a priority in all that they do. Their sense of self worth is not found in their title or their hourly wage, but instead in a job well done.

Sadly, many of us are guilty of being the first person. We spend way too much time looking around to see what everyone else has. We are more concerned about everyone else’s work, without ever taking a critical look at our own work.

For me the greatest thing that has moved me from “slacker” to “striver” is to look at my work through a different lens. As a follower of Jesus, I strive to do everything for His honor and glory. When I began to realize that my actions are a reflection upon Him, and that my work when done to the best of my abilities brings glory to Him…work took on a whole new meaning.

Today, I want to challenge you to work with excellence. No matter how menial or trivial you may think your position in life is, view it as a chance to shine. Be the best at what you do…the world is watching.

Until next Monday, may God’s richest blessings be yours this week.

Carl