The Pursuit of Excellence? Are We Doing This Right? 

I try not to be one of those people who gets triggered, but I have to admit I got triggered the other day, and I was triggered by a weird word. The word was excellence. Oh excellence is a fine word with many fine applications, but when I hear it in connection to the church and especially arts in the church, I cringe and I have to fight against the urge to be triggered. If this sounds absolutely ridiculous to you, read on. 

What Does Excellence Even Mean?

Okay I know there is a dictionary definition. According to Oxford Languages, it means, “the quality of being outstanding or extremely good.” The problem then becomes who defines “outstanding” or “good?” And yes, I know the Bible reminds us in Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” And yes, I know in this case God defines excellent, but still, what does it mean?

What Is Excellent in the World of Art?

I’ve said it often, I may have even said it in this column before, but as long as Jackson Pollock and Rembrandt can hang in the same museum, no one really knows anything about art. I happen to think both of those artists are brilliant in their own way, but art is subjective. One man’s excellent is another man’s trash, and this is where I get stuck. 

An Example of Excellence and Why I Struggle

A friend of mine had a church worship band that was really pretty wonderful. One day I was invited to minister at his church and the band was going on before me. I’ve never been one to sit “back stage.” I want to worship with God’s people. On this particular day, worship brought me to tears. It wasn’t the band, though they did a great job. It wasn’t the song or the lyric or any of the usual things that touch my heart. Instead it was my neighbor.  You see I was standing next to a young man with Down Syndrome. Was his singing ability notable? No. I’m not sure he hit a single note on key. There was nothing most of the world would call excellent, but his passion and sincerity brought me to tears. To me that’s excellence. 

Insisting on Excellence

So many churches insist on excellence in every area of their ministry, and that should be so, but I think a lot of people get excellence wrong. If we are only talking about the most talented and skilled, where does that leave everyone else? In the church, we lament the “consumer mentality,” and then turn around and anoint the gifted few, relegating everyone else to being… consumers. When we insist on excellence, by a worldly definition, we feed our own monster, while lamenting his existence. I loved the saying attributed to Francis Chan. Someone came up to him and said they didn’t like the worship that day in church. It is said Chan replied, “That’s okay, we weren’t worshiping you.” ( ) We can’t create consumers and then cry when people become consumers. 

Is There Room for Excellence?

Absolutely. Everything we do for God should be excellent. I know it seems like I am talking in circles, but I assure you I’m not. I’m arguing for a better definition of excellent, which brings me back to Pollock and Rembrandt. How can two people with such different styles both be seen as excellent? It’s because they both brought their best. They made the best art they could, hung it on the wall, claimed it as their art, and people were drawn to it. The only thing anyone can do is their best. God knows the abilities He has put in each of us. He knows what He put into us, and if we bring that, I think He is pleased. What if excellence was defined as, the best you can do? That’s all the “excellence” any of us can achieve. 

I Can Hear You Screaming From Here

I feel like I know what you want to say. You’re thinking about the awful singer who takes the solo in church and people cringe. You might be thinking, “That’s their best, but why subject anyone to it?” But we’re not worshipping you, so let’s try to look at it from God’s perspective. If that person was really offering their best, do you think He was pleased with the “sacrifice of praise” that was offered? And if so, is that enough? I think of my friend Bob. He is a fantastic singer, and a man of great faith. Ideally that’s what we want, but if we can’t get both, faith should trump talent. Too often I think we forget that in the pursuit of excellence. 

Why I Got Triggered

The truth is, after doing art most of my life, including professionally for many years, there’s still the question of imposter syndrome. Am I good enough? I expect that from the world, but I feel like the church should be different. What if instead of insisting on excellence, we helped people to grow into excellence. Natural talent is a great thing. It’s a gift from God, but we who follow Him are called to offer that gift back to Him. It’s not enough to be really good and skilled, though both of those things are desirable. What matters most is that we have an excellent relationship with God. I think excellence is a great thing, but we serve a God whose thoughts are not our thoughts and whose ways are not our ways. I think the only definition of excellence that really matters is His definition.  

How Does One Become Excellent?

The old cliche holds true. “How do you get to Carnegie Hall?” The answer is “Practice, practice, practice!” We become excellent by doing, and doing and doing. Talent is a wonderful thing, but talent is something that grows if nurtured. If only the best, the “most excellent” need apply, how do people grow? We need to be creating opportunities in the church for people to grow in their gifts and talents and abilities. What if we could nurture people to excellence, help them find their best gifts and develop them? If we did that, we would cease to create consumers and start making creative disciples. 

Appropriate Exhibition

I’m not saying we throw people into the deep end. Instead we give people the opportunity to create and start putting themselves out there in ways that are appropriate to their level of development. One of the best examples I have seen of this is in community theater. It is pretty rare for a person to walk in off the street and get a lead role. Instead they come in, land an ensemble part, learn some skills, have a great time and grow. After a little while, some are ready to take on larger roles, while others realize their gifts work better behind the scenes. What if the church worked like that with creatives. Rather than insisting that they walk in the door ready made and full of talent, we help them to grow into excellence or channel them to their areas of their greatest gifting?

Making Disciples

After all, we don’t insist people clean up their act before they come to church. We expect people to come in broken and sinful and we trust by faith that God will do a work in their lives. What if we treated gifts and abilities the same way? We have people come in raw and unskilled and we help them to learn and grow in the things God has given them. We help them to become the best they can be, and we help them to nurture a relationship with God. Maybe that’s how we get excellence, while treating people excellently. We help them to connect their gifts to the Giver and spur one another on to love and good deeds.

Everybody Gets to Play  

I once went to visit a wonderful ministry in Idaho. They had artists of all levels creating together. They had exhibitions for people at all levels, and it was wonderful. I remember talking to one of the leaders, a renowned artist, and brilliant—a man whose work is excellent by any standard. He shared the philosophy of the ministry and it touched my heart. “Everybody gets to play.” Folks that’s how we get true excellence. People learn and grow together, keeping our gifts in line with the giver. Ultimately the only definition of excellence that matters in the church is God’s definition. He is the audience for worship. Lets do work and have hearts that make Him say, that’s really excellent. Well done.