Believers see God in our Art.
Non-Believers see Good in our Art.
We need to make sure our Good is “good enough” to allow non-believers to see the God in our art. Excellence is the universal language in this day in age. We all speak in different languages, we drive on different sides of the road and we have different words for “soda” (or as I say Coke, since I’m from Atlanta), regardless of our differences excellence cuts through it all.
As the bride of Christ, we have a greater reason to share the best we can as we create experiences, shape ideas and execute events. It’s not that we ought to or must be…. but rather we get to.
Saying Yes or Saying no.
The secret in achieving excellence is not trying to do everything you can think of, but rather doing a few select things really well. You may think that means saying “No” more often. Maybe it’s instead saying yes.
My friend Bill in St. Louis wrote a powerful article in SundayMag a few years ago that has sat with me forever. I encourage you to read it, but here is one of my favorite quotes from it:
Calmly saying “Yes, but…” instead of “no” allows you the opportunity to let your leadership decided the priorities of that request.
It also allows you the opportunity to help educate your leadership in what your world actually looks like.
This may be just as important as their request – no matter what their request.
Pursuit and Posture
There’s another way to achieve excellence: letting our work be a posture of our heart instead a pursuit of perfection.
Excellence is a choice.
A heart choice and a hard choice.
When we allow ourselves to take the time needed to make something truly great, we allow ourselves to be 100% real and authentic with the talents, gifts and abilities God gives us. It’s an offering of ourselves to the world. An offering we’re proud of and an offering the God of the universe so rightly deserves from His chosen people.
He formed our inner beings and shaped us out of his image. Don’t you think He deserves the best of our creativity… the best of our ideas… the best of our work?
Lets begin to make the things we create for our worship environments, season people’s lives in a way that’s excellent. This hasn’t been our story, but in order to rebuild the creative walls of the church – it’s more than essential.
