Tony’s post “Should I pursue unexcellent?” got my mind going. The key here is that excellence does not equal perfection. If we expect perfection out of our ministry, we will fail every time and be miserable in the process.

So what’s the difference? I like to think of it this way: Perfection is the act of being perfect while excellence is striving to be perfect. Perfection is being absolutely flawless, without error, never making any mistakes. Excellence is allowing our God-given talents to express themselves to the max.

So, excellence = mediocrity? Absolutely not! The bible commands us to strive to be perfect (excellence). This is apparent over and over - Philippians 1:10, 3:12-13, 4:8, 1 Peter 1:16. We will not achieve perfection until we are eternally united with God in Heaven, but we are to press on towards this goal. That is excellence.

Here are a few other random thoughts:

• Perfection is a fear of mistakes while excellence sees opportunities for improvement.
• Perfection is attempting to be in control while excellence is allowing god to be in control.
• Perfection is setting unreasonably standards will beyond reach. Excellence is setting high and perhaps difficult to attain, but attainable standards.
• Perfection can lead to misery and failure - it’s simply not attainable here on Earth. Excellence, however, leads to fulfillment and greatness.

Now, we do have to be careful. What we don’t want is to use excellence as an excuse for mediocrity. It’s easy to say “It can never be perfect, so this will have to do.” Sorry, but that “Ain’t gonna cut it.” We should never settle for “Good” when we can have “Great.”

The bottom line is: We must recognize that excellence is not perfection, but it’s also not mediocrity. We are to give our best, but also set attainable goals and recognize out limits.