IN THE PURSUIT OF EXCELLENCE

When God created the world, He created the heavens and the earth and said it was good (Gen 1:31). In fact it was Excellent, He was just being modest.

Can we look back on all we do and call it excellent?

What is excellent? Utmost quality, High class, incomparable, perfect, distinction.

A person of excellence always strives to be the best and keep going till they reach perfection like God, He did not rest till he made the most perfect creature and finished the world. God was progressive in His thinking while created. Everything He built needed the next thing to give it purpose, and He ended in creating a perfect man that will tend to and make use of all that He had done. 
We are made in His image and in us is instilled the ability to be excellent and must keep striving to attain the state of Excellence. 

Tips to being an excellent person:

• ·         A person of excellence never procrastinate, they work immediately to do what needs to be done. They take the opportunity to succeed at the first attempt. Why? They realise that the enemy is at his weakest point first attempt, so they are ready to meet attack and kill every time they go to war, because the enemy you meet today, when you fight tomorrow will be stronger and more ready to beat you. 
• ·         A person of excellence realises that today’s excellence is tomorrow’s mediocrity. Not everything we do is perfect but everything should be progressive.
• ·         A person of excellence does not dwell with mere people but kings, in a struggle to be better. The people around you motivate you to be better, if you hang out with people who have done what you are trying to do, things are made easier and you are motivated. Prov 22:29
• ·         A person of excellence realises that they have never arrived but realise they are always on a journey. It doesn't matter if you are at the highest point of your career; you are still on a journey.
• ·         An excellent person is in competition to beat others but to be the best they can be. Excellent athletes run to beat their best time and not the other athletes, in a quest to beat your best time you may find that you win against others but being the best you can be is more important.

 2Cor 3:2-13

There was a glory on the Old Testament, but the glory of the New Testament was greater. Even though the old testament was excellent, things progressed into the new testament because a better system was in place. if there was no progression, there need be no separation. The Old Testament had to pass away for the better things in the New Testament to manifest. The Israelites were still stuck on the old ways of the law when Christ had brought about a better way.To be excellent we have to adapt new systems that bring about excellence. 

Key Ingredients for Excellence
Focus.

• Do not focus on results, but focus on change. Change brings about results.
• Keep your eyes single and focus on one thing. Anything else in the way is a distraction and deters you from seeing what your focus should be. 
• The sharper your focus is the sharper you are.  
• To be focused you need priorities and concentration. Your priorities help you set your focus and concentration on your priorities keeps you focused. If you lack concentration but have priorities, you will never attain your priorities.

The Israelites focused too much on Moses and the law they cannot see the better way God has set before them. We are too focused on our old ways and practices we miss things.
Phil 3:1-13
In our quest to be excellent let us emulate Paul. Paul was a smart, multi talented guy. He was the best lawyer and used it in the persecution of the people of God. He was well learned and was raised to be a religious Jew; born into the tribe of Benjamin, He was circumcised, he was a Pharisee and believed so much in the law (the old way) that he sentenced all those that believed in Jesus Christ (the new way). He became excellent when he counted all this for loss to focus on Christ. He forgot everything that He was involved in and His many talents to be focused on Christ.
We also should be like Paul, count for loss your old way of life because Christ is the only way to perfection. Focus on Him, you can survive on Him not on your many talent or brain and in your focus on Him you will do everything to be the best of your ability.

In the pursuit of excellence, focus on Jesus Christ.