Go Beyond

Growing up, leading worship musically, I would continually hear these conversations about “excellence” and “having the heart of a worshipper” or “being authentic” or some other spiritual phrase.

And couched right there between this idea of excellence and having a worshipper’s heart was the word “versus.” It was to say that excellence was unspiritual and the other things were spiritual and we are forced to choose one or the other. The reality is this: Excellence, going beyond, exceeding expectations is one of the best ways for us to reflect the nature and character of God.

God’s heart - even from the beginning - was to love and bless His people. God’s covenant with Abram and what He wanted to accomplish in humanity wasn’t about digging humanity out of a hole or even meeting our bare needs. God’s pact with Abram, and His heart for us is about blessing.

“I will make you into a great nation
    and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
   and you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you,
   and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
   will be blessed through you.”

And we know that God went to the fullest extent to fulfill this covenant in sending his only son as a means to accomplish it. This reality moves us from a self-centered, survivor mentality into a posture of emulating God’s character by giving everything we have.

Not only does this shift take place in our lives as individuals, but exceeding expectations should permeate our church culture as well. Healthy organizations aren’t focused on trying to meet bare minimums. They are focused on going beyond.

Let’s take a home prayer gathering as an example. Five minutes after the gathering was to begin, we’re rushing around trying to find enough seats for everyone. The bathroom wasn’t cleaned. And perhaps, our spouse or roommate is in the kitchen making some last minute dinner to shove down before we begin.

Scenario number two: It’s 15 minutes prior to start time. There is a sign in the front yard signifying that yours is the house people are looking for. The porch lights are on, and the chairs are set out. There are some candles lit around the room and some pillows set out for people who might want to sit on the floor or kneel.

It would be easy for us to dismiss this type of preparation as frivolous and unspiritual, but these scenarios - in some ways - reflect what we think about God more authentically than what we say we believe about Him. There is an unspoken message in how we prepare.

In the first scenario, we communicate that people’s presence in our home is a nuisance and, perhaps, even unwanted. We communicate through our lack of preparation that we don’t value the activity that is about to take place in our home. And the hustle and bustle is a frenzied environment not necessarily conducive for prayer and meditation.

The second scenario communicates the value and appreciation we have for people. Preparation communicates that what we are about to engage in is important and - even more importantly - the people who have come are cared for. We have cultivated an environment that reflects what we say we believe about God, prayer and people. And the restful nature of the room sets a tone for intimate engagement with God.

Mark 6, 7, and 8 provide three important examples of the power of excellence from the life of Jesus:

In Mark 6, Jesus has just fed the 5,000, and in verse 42, it says, “They all ate and were satisfied.” It doesn’t say that Jesus met the bare minimum of their needs. It doesn’t say they were no longer hungry. It says, “They all ate and were satisfied,” and then goes on to say the “disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish.” Jesus didn’t have to feed these people. In fact, the disciples wanted to send them away. But Jesus not only fed them, He made sure there was food enough to satisfy and beyond.

Again, in Mark 7, we see the power of Jesus’ willingness to do things well. People were overwhelmed with amazement. “He has done everything well,” they said. “He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.” Right next to healing the deaf and mute is the amazement of the people by Jesus’ ability to do everything well. People were drawn to Jesus because of his ability to exceed expectations.

And then Mark 8 gives us a beautiful glimpse into why Jesus was willing to do all of this in the first place. “I have compassion for these people,” He said. What a beautiful foundation for our willingness to emulate Jesus in doing all things well - compassion. Because we care about people, because we have compassion on them, we’re willing to go the extra mile, we’re willing to prepare well, we’re willing to give of ourselves fully and we’re willing to put in the work to exceed expectations.

So whether you eat or drink or run a meeting or volunteer at a church or preach a sermon or teach a class or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.

He’s done so much, so extravagantly for us. Let’s follow His example and go beyond in everything we do.

Where do you find yourself going beyond? And in what areas do you need to work on exceeding expectations? Tell us in the comments below.