How Excellence Brings you Before Kings
When I was a child, from 3rd to 6th grade, I remember seeing the word ‘excellent’ on my exam papers whenever I scored a hundred percent.
It wasn’t a word that was served to everyone. Anytime I saw it on my friends’ marked papers and I didn’t have it, I knew for sure I had to pull up my socks a little higher.
Check out below these two versions of a verse because they contribute to the base for our discussion too.
“Do you see a man who excels in his work? He will stand before kings; He will not stand before unknown men.”
Proverbs 22:29 NKJV
“If you are uniquely gifted in your work, you will rise and be promoted. You won’t be held back- you’ll stand before kings.”
Proverbs 22:29 TPT
This verse right here gets me!
When you think about it, what thoughts does it trigger in you?
Do you feel like you just want to go and excel in the responsibilities placed on you?
I get the same feeling!
I believe everyone, if not most of us, desires to stand before kings because of their talents.
Imagine showcasing your beautiful work of art, voice, and speech before renowned names on the face of the Earth.
What an honor! Right?
I find the words from the good book so encouraging because that promise is up for grabs by anyone who excels at what they do.
You are no exception, the only condition given is to excel.
Let’s look at a few points on this topic.
God gives us the spirit of excellence
Bezalel and Oholiab
In case you are not familiar with these names, their story is found in the book of Exodus in the Bible (from Chapter 31).
When Moses was up the Mt. Sinai, receiving instructions from God, God mentioned these two: Bezalel and Oholiab and they would work on every artistic work.
He chose them and filled them with His Spirit, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge, and with all kinds of skills to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver, and bronze.
Are these not the things that define excellence? Skills, knowledge, wisdom, and understanding.
They come from God.
Take a leap of faith and ask for them.
Ask God to lead you to the kind of skills you need to excel in your field.
Excellence requires dedication and commitment
When you are dedicated to something you invest your time and effort in it. When you commit to something, you might be required to make worthy sacrifices to achieve that thing.
Commitment and dedication are not just about words, your actions have to align with your goals and values.
If we closely look at Daniel from the Bible, he was willing to sacrifice his life provided he didn’t compromise on his beliefs.
He was not about to bow and worship a foreign god and for that, he was put in the lions’ den.
God rescues him by shutting the lions’ mouths.
Excellence comes as we strive for perfection
This is not a call to be obsessed with perfection (that can be damaging), it’s a call to seek the highest standard possible. As in give your best.
Christ urges us to be perfect as our heavenly father is perfect. (Matthew 5:8)
In our human power, obtaining perfection is impossible but it’s the pursuit of it that brings out excellence.
You have to differentiate the two so that they work to your advantage.
Excellence calls for Continuous improvement
Demonstrating excellence involves a commitment to improvement and seeking to develop our skills and abilities.
That is how you constantly excel. You excel at your skill by learning how to diversify it to gain an advantage in the face of our competitive world.
If you are not seeking to constantly improve your speaking abilities, someone more skilled will be picked to remove a speech before the very kings you stood before.
Paul puts it this way in Philippians 3:12- “Not that I have obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that which Christ Jesus took hold of me.”
This is a guy who seems accomplished in our eyes in matters of faith but his standard is not the human standing, it’s of a higher level.
True excellence demonstrates integrity and character
True integrity goes deeper than the surface. It’s beyond action. It’s driven by a deep sense of moral character.
The perfect example is Joseph.
He is sold by his brothers to Egypt as a slave but he gets a really nice ‘job.’
Later on, he’s put in prison because of a false accusation. His character speaks for him and brings him out of prison.
Pharaoh acknowledges there was something different in Joseph and elevates him to high place, next to him (Genesis 41:38-40).
We are living in a time when most success is achieved by compromising but here is a man who risked going to prison if it meant his character was not tainted.
What a cool and happy ending for him!
It takes us back to the verse we started with.
A man who excels in what he does is brought to serve before a king!
Be encouraged in your pursuit of excellence.