You may remember Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure. 
Even if you don't, you have likely had adventures in excellence. All through school we were encouraged to strive for excellence. Many of us, long past our classroom days, have found that it is easier to declare something "Excellent!" than it is to produce excellence. It seems that life conspires against superlative performance, and could it that we misdefine (Is that an excellent word?) excellence, as it applies in the world where most of live?
In Colossians, a book I've been spending time in for the past few weeks, the Apostle Paul says some things that I think could come under the heading of "excellence." He tells slaves that they are to obey with "sincerity of heart," and work, "heartily, as unto the Lord." Somehow, when I think of showing something to the Lord, I don't hear "Good enough," as being good enough. After all, the entire book is about Christ's superlative nature. "In Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form." (2:9)
Consider though,would a slave, assigned to dig post-
holes, please his master if he spent all day digging one perfectly proportioned meticulously neat hole?
"Of course not!" you say.
Don't tune out just, yet. All of us have a Master. He is not only our Boss from 9:00 to 5:00, but over our home-life, the time we spend alone, even the hours we spend asleep. As a pastor of a small church if I prepare one exegetically, homiletically, and oratorically excellent message, yet neglect everything else I should be doing that week--not only at church but at home--am I performing with excellence?
At this point I may have succeeded only in making things more difficult. Not only do we need to be concerned about doing what we do with excellence, we need to apply excellence to the consideration of what we do. Actually, let's turn that around. First, I ought to ask:
We should all work with excellence. But housewives with three preschoolers shouldn't be down on themselves because their house doesn't look like a spread in Better Homes and Gardens. Sometimes working with excellence will mean doing less on a particular task, not more. The big question is not what I want, or what others who are pros at this activity expect, but what does my Boss want? The servant who works with excellence strives to hear these words: "Well done, good and faithful servant.
It's STTA.
In Colossians, a book I've been spending time in for the past few weeks, the Apostle Paul says some things that I think could come under the heading of "excellence." He tells slaves that they are to obey with "sincerity of heart," and work, "heartily, as unto the Lord." Somehow, when I think of showing something to the Lord, I don't hear "Good enough," as being good enough. After all, the entire book is about Christ's superlative nature. "In Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form." (2:9)
Consider though,would a slave, assigned to dig post-
"Of course not!" you say.
Don't tune out just, yet. All of us have a Master. He is not only our Boss from 9:00 to 5:00, but over our home-life, the time we spend alone, even the hours we spend asleep. As a pastor of a small church if I prepare one exegetically, homiletically, and oratorically excellent message, yet neglect everything else I should be doing that week--not only at church but at home--am I performing with excellence?
At this point I may have succeeded only in making things more difficult. Not only do we need to be concerned about doing what we do with excellence, we need to apply excellence to the consideration of what we do. Actually, let's turn that around. First, I ought to ask:
- Am I doing what the Lord wants me to be doing?
- Am I attempting too much?
- Am I distracted by activities that don't matter?
We should all work with excellence. But housewives with three preschoolers shouldn't be down on themselves because their house doesn't look like a spread in Better Homes and Gardens. Sometimes working with excellence will mean doing less on a particular task, not more. The big question is not what I want, or what others who are pros at this activity expect, but what does my Boss want? The servant who works with excellence strives to hear these words: "Well done, good and faithful servant.
It's STTA.
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