"When is our best ever good enough"
Philippians 3:14 says " I keep trying to reach the goal and get the prize for which God called me though Christ to the life above"
Every day that we live we are striving to get somewhere; from where we currently are (no matter how good or bad that might be) to where we ultimately want to be.
Each day we have certain actions we do that help us to reach that goal. And each of these actions receive a reward (we shall reap what we have sown).
I wish to discuss the four actions we take in this life although some of us never quite reach stage 4.
Stage One - "We give poor actions and receive painful results." This is the person who doesnt go to work on time, doesn't do their best, is a halfway present parent and a sometimes in the mood spouse. They go through life with a half do it attitude and those around them suffer. People who perform poor actions tend to get painful results. The job fires them because they slack off so much; the children go off and do all kinds of crazy things because of their parents and the spouse leaves a note on the table telling them they are gone for good. Poor is something we all should avoid.
Stage two - "We give good actions and get poor results". This is the stage that I believe many of us fall into. We try to be good. We strive to do good. We give our best. We focus on bring a good employee, good parent, good spouse. We live to be a good Christian. Yet have you ever wondered why so many bad things happen to good people? You are a good employee and you still lose your job. You are a good parent and your child still ends up in drugs. You are a good spouse and your spouse still choses to cheat and leave you. Good guys do finish last. And its hard to explain why. But in our world, good many times is just not good enough.
Stage three - "we give excellent actions and get good results". The church has spoken a lot through the years about excellence. Companies pride themselves on giving excellent service. But when we get to the end of it all we realize that excellence should not be the exception but the norm. You cannot expect to get good results in this life if all you do is a good job. And even when you do an excellent job you still end up with results that don't set you apart from the crowd but at least you are doing better than most. To get good results you must strive to deliver an excellent performance.
I have shared with you the top three actions over 95% of the world takes on a regular basis. Given that even when people do an excellent job they only get good results we can see how this is very frustrating. Excellence costs. It doesn't come free, cheap or easy. So is that all we have to look forward to in this life, a good existence?
No, I submit unto you that the fourth stage is where a select few leave the rest of the world behind. People who fall into this catagory stand out because the job they do is above excellent. Its way above.
Stage four -"we give exceptional actions and get outstanding results." Think about those who go above and beyond. In sports you will have two excellent teams go to the Superbowl but the team who performs exceptionally tends to win. The same applies to the world series. Boxing. Tennis. Business. Parenting. Marriage. Those who go above and beyond, who do more than is asked or expected, who give it their all and then some, these people experience the results that come only to the exceptional.
Can I encourage you today to strive to be the very best in whatever it is that you do. Whatever you hands find to do, do it with all your might. And see God reward you with outstanding results.
I will see you in God's house this week.
Pastor Jeff
