THE DISCIPLINE OF EXCELLENCE
“Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.” Ecclesiastes 9:10
The Scripture gives us instruction to avoid the hindering attitude of mediocrity. It is understandable, and should be appreciated, that the Word of God repeatedly warns us of the danger of being half-hearted about our work. We need these cautions because we have a natural tendency to be or do less than our true potential. Jesus rebuked the Laodicean church for being lukewarm. We are urged in many places to serve, to sing, and to love God with our whole heart. God wants our best, and excellence should be our objective.
Where should we expect excellence in our efforts? Our text tells us we should give our best in “whatsoever thy hand findeth to do.” It has been said, “Anything worth doing is worth doing right.” The Bible does not make a distinction between important things and less important things. We are encouraged to pursue excellence in whatever we do. As a matter of fact, it is probably true that carelessness in the smaller things promotes negligence in the larger things. We know that Jesus promised that faithfulness in a few things would be rewarded with opportunity in many things.
Our text tells us that after the grave, certain opportunities for service will be lost. It is in this life that we are privileged to labor for the Master. One day, it will be too late for us to do what we have been given to do now. Jesus said in John 9:4, “I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.” Every day we draw closer to eternity. What we intend to do, we must do now. We ought to have a sense of urgency about serving God while we have the opportunity. Our day of resting from our work will come.
In the meantime, we should be busy. And how would the Lord have us to go about our calling and place of service? Whatever it is that we find to do, we are to do it with our might. There ought to be a commitment on our part to give God our best, and always do our best. With God as our Helper, let us determine not to offer to Him that which costs us nothing. Let’s not be satisfied with mediocrity in our involvements. One day, we will answer to Him for our stewardship, and we want to know that we did our best for the Master.