EXCELLENCE | Frank Becker

Week Thirty-Five, 2024

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom. Ecclesiastes 9:10

In his book, Excellence Wins, Horst Schulze spells how he did it. As co-founder of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, he tells how he took it to the top of excellent and respected hotels. He spells out a no-nonsense guide to becoming the best in a world of compromise. An enjoyable read, it tells not just how to build a hotel brand, but how we all should manage our lives.

Though not a spiritual book, as I read it, I couldn’t keep from putting a spiritual spin on it. God wants us to live excellence in our spiritual lives. Like Schulze, who says to put the hotel guests first, God wants us to put Him first in our lives.

Excellence is the quality of excelling, of being the very best at something. Human beings have an intrinsic desire to see excellence. In every people group across the world, excellence is prized and rewarded. Whether it is a tribe celebrating excellence in hunting or a Wall Street accountant promoted because of his excellence in finance, our appreciation of excellence comes from our Creator. To be made in God’s image means that He imparted some of His character qualities to us (Genesis 1:27). We crave justice because He is just (Psalm 9:16). We love because He is love (1 John 4:16). And we strive for excellence because He is excellent in everything He does (Deuteronomy 32:4).

Many things get in the way of human excellence, including apathy, carelessness, and laziness. Our sinful nature is that part of us that is unlike God and is in fact in opposition to God and His excellence. We are all born sinners, and that sin manifests itself in a thousand ways. We cut corners, we shirk, we settle for second best (or third or fourth best) if the effort to achieve excellence is more than we’re willing to give. God’s cure for our careless ways is to remind us that He is our ultimate judge. We must answer to Him for how we spend our time, our resources, and our energy (Matthew 12:36; 1 Corinthians 3:13–15). Striving for excellence should be a part of all we do: “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving” Colossians 3:23–24.

Aware that it is Christ Himself we are serving, we don’t want to present Him with anything but excellence. Whether it is sweeping streets or running a country, we should strive for excellence in work ethic, in character, and in craftsmanship. No one is good at everything, but we’re all good at something. God expects us to develop the skills and gifts He’s given us in order to serve Him and others better.

Are you striving for excellence in your spiritual life?

SOMETIMES TRUE STORIES

Since Roe v. Wade legalized abortion in America, more than 63,000,000 babies have been aborted.

This is a population four times the size of New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Houston—combined!!!!!!!!

And yet, more Americans than ever before think abortion should be legal under any circumstances. More than two-thirds also believe it should be legal in the first three months of pregnancy.

If you believe as I do that life begins at conception, you might be asking yourself:

How can so many people be so wrong on this crucial issue?

Abortion is the moral issue of our day.

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When they said, “Caesar’s,” Jesus then said, “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”

Then the Pharisees marveled at His words and left Him and went away.

“Render to Caesar what is Caesar’s…” but we often forget the second part of His response.

“… and to God the things that are God’s.”

Wow… that means everything. Because it’s all God’s. God created it. God gave it to us. And Jesus reminds us and the Pharisees to give God everything that is His.

That means everything. Not just our money, but our possessions. But not just our possession, but our lives and our livelihoods. We are to give Him everything. All that we are. All that we do. All that we have. All back to God for Him and His glory. For Him and His work. For Him to do with as He pleases. What are you giving back to God?

Marty Stubblefield

QUOTES YOU CAN USE

Suffering is not an optional class in the university of life. Dana Hardee

Christianity is not a religion. It’s a Divine relationship. God Blesses with His chosen children. Stephen Bernard

Looking forward to things is half the pleasure of them. L.M. Montgomery

Never underestimate the power of stupid people in a large group. George Carlin

The world is changed by your example, not by your opinion. Paul Coleho

Beware of false knowledge as it is more dangerous than ignorance. George Bernard Shaw

When Jesus died on the cross the veil in the temple was torn from top to bottom so that big sinners like me might fit through it. Charles Spurgeon

We often put ourselves in some pretty miserable positions because we move ahead without seeking God.

There are some people who always seem angry and continuously look for conflict. Walk away; the battle they are fighting isn’t with you, it is with themselves.

If Jesus didn’t come to condemn the world, we shouldn’t condemn the world, either. Instead, we should “believe the God we believe in and thus share his truth with his grace. R. C. Sproul

We have enough money. We just cannot control our financial appetite. Chris Dodson

You can change what a person looks like on the outside, but can’t change one’s real person on the inside. Too often, we look at people the same way. We form our opinions of them by the outside, when it’s the inside that matters. Rich Jensen

There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it’s going to be a butterfly.

R. Buckminister Fuller

Never, never, never give up!!! Winston Churchill

Heaven has strict entrance requirements, but hell has open borders. Rodney Akers

My worship was empty because I was too worried about filling me… instead of pouring out and worshiping Him – the one that could and would wash me clean and fill me again. Marty Stubblefield

When you have a true encounter with God, you come away with the realization that God is for you. Dan Shock

We go to all kinds of seminars to get all kinds of answers, but God has our answers. Ask Him! Matt Blair

If it’s not in God’s time, you can’t force it. If it is in God’s time, you can’t stop it!

What a wonderful thought it is that some of the best days of our lives haven’t even happened yet. Anne Frank

All in this world are not disobedient to God but, the devil is the most “cunning” ‘fisher of men’ as his baits are deceitful and enticing. Stephen Bernard

What’s one of the differences between humans and animals?

Animals don’t let the weak lead.

Trying to grasp the incredible gift of eternal life is like trying to understand the generosity of our Creator…watching a sunrise and sunset in just a twelve-hour period is a good way to start. Dwight Short

How closely does your life line up with the Gospel you profess? Brenden Schlappi

Forgiveness is the greatest miracle that Jesus ever performs. It meets the greatest need; it costs the greatest price; and it brings the greatest blessing and the most lasting results. Forgiveness is Biblical and it is costly. The greatest act Jesus did for me was to make me a child of God by forgiving our sins. When we sin, we sin against God and only He can forgive our sins. When Jesus says your sins are forgiven, He is saying He is ready to pay the price for our sins. Be a great friend and bring others to Jesus. Warren Wiersbe

There is no doubt that it is around the family and the home that all the greatest virtues, the most dominating virtues of human, are created, strengthened and maintained.

Winston Churchill

I am careful not to confuse excellence with perfection. Excellence, I can reach for; perfection is God’s business. Michael J. Fox

A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.” – John C. Maxwell

To love what you do and feel that it matters – how could anything be more fun? Katharin Graham

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