Week 31 | Excellence

Everyday is a new day. Every day is a new opportunity to show up and be great.

Joyce Meyer says "Whatever you do, do it with excellence, be a person of integrity, and keep strife out of your life." 

Excellence is the quality of being outstanding or extremely good, but it is not perfection. Excellence means doing the best you can with whatever you have. You might want to have a bigger role on your team, like starting or scoring more points, but until that happens, master the role that you have right now. If you are going to do something, do it right. That means how you show up, how you work, how you listen. That also means how you act in the locker room, how you clean up the bench when the game is over, how you listen to and talk to your coaches, teammates, and referees.

Integrity is the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles. The Bible says, "Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but he who makes his way crooked will be found out (Proverbs 10:9)." It also says, "The integrity of the upright guides them, but the crookedness of the treacherous destroys them (Proverbs 11:3)." If you say you are going to do something, do it. Touch the line. Clean up after yourself. Don't cheat.

Strife is angry or bitter disagreements or conflict. The Bible says, "Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses." It also says, "A dishonest man spread strife, and a whisperer separates close friends (16:28). 2nd Timothy 2:23-25 says, "Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. And the Lord's servant must be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth.

Be a great teammate. Don't talk bad about your coaches or your teammates, especially behind their back. When there are issues, find ways to correct and repair the relationship. Simon Sinek says, "A culture is strong when people work with each other and for each other. A culture is weak when people work against each other and for themselves."

A foundation of success is having strong, Godly character. Without a strong foundation, you won't be able to maintain or sustain success. The Bible says that you will know them by their fruit. A good tree doesn't give bad fruit. To produce good fruit, we have to do good work. Do what you say you are going to do, and do it to the best of your ability. Don't cheat yourself or the team by showing up late, leaving early, and not bringing energy and enthusiasm. Don't bring strife and conflict. Work to bring people together.

After spending a short amount of time with you, people should know that there is something different about you. Your energy should be different. Your honesty and your commitment to excellence should be different. If you are going to do something, do it right.

This Week

1 - Do everything you do with excellence. Do the best you can in whatever you are asked to do. If you do the best with what you have, consistently, you will be trusted to do more. What is one area that you can commit to being excellent in this week?

2 - Do everything you say you are going to do. What is one way that you can show your integrity this week?

3 - Don't talk negatively about anybody, and avoid unnecessary fights with the people around you. Bring people together. What is one way that you can avoid strife (unnecessary conflict), or what is one way you can help your team avoid strife?

For a Google Doc version, click here: Week 31 Devo