Would You Rather?

Have you ever found yourself getting tired, anxious, or stressed out when trying to do good things?

It seems that everywhere we turn we’re surrounded by the message that, “If it is to be, it’s up to me.” Trying to be the good Christians we feel we ought to be, we tend to pour all our “up to me” efforts into doing really, really, good things for God.

After all, the Bible does teach that we are to do the things He wants us to do, “well.” (Romans 12:6-8 and 1 Peter 4:10) And also that we are to use the talents we have been given in a way that they increase. Because if we bury them out of fear, we’ll find ourselves in some kind of terrible trouble - something about “weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matthew 25:14-30) Reading these passages of Scripture and others like them, it’s easy to feel pressure that we had best be doing our very best. Even just the words “gifts” and “talents,” both given by God and empowered by the Holy Spirit set a high bar.

In a way, you could say that they kind of should. After all, as Christians, we are representatives of what an amazing, perfect, and holy God can do – designed in His image to bring glory to Him.

So, is the Bible contradicting itself when it also tells us that “Jesus’ yoke is easy and His burden is light?” That we can find “rest for our souls” in surrendering our lives in service to Him? And that some of the fruits of the Spirit are joy and peace? (Matthew 11:28-30 and Galatians 5:22-23)

How do we wrestle with this so we can understand just exactly what God is asking of us?

The classic “Would You Rather” game is a great way of wrestling through different options for doing things and considering our own natural tendencies. When it comes to our service to God and what the Bible has to say about it, a great “Would You Rather” question to consider is…

Would you rather serve God and others perfectly, or serve God and others with excellence?

Is there even a difference?

Both biblical scholars and those who study mental health agree that yes - there absolutely is. Even if the final products of our efforts wind up looking exactly the same (perfect and excellent even?), there is a different process, experience, and overall “feeling” for both the servant and those being served depending on whether service is done in a spirit of perfection, or one of excellence.

Here’s how the two play out differently.

Trying to serve perfectly is rooted in a terrible fear of failure and people. Going for approval, big-splash results, others’ trust in our abilities, a sense of personal achievement, and repeat requests for our services, it can be life-draining. It is fueled by comparison and unhealthy levels of adrenaline - a human drive to not wind up looking bad, incompetent, unnecessary, or unneeded. Because it is dependent on the affirmation of others, it oddly enough, can even lead to compromising necessary standards. Which leads to regret.

Perfectionism causes us to take on the frustrating and sometimes costly task of acquiring whatever is needed so we can maintain a certain image. It creates a nagging angst that others might see our mistakes, failures, and limitations which causes us to miss out on great opportunities to ask questions, learn new things, and grow. Along with this, we lose our ability to experience unconditional love.

The work process under the tyranny of perfectionism feels stressful, overwhelming, and highly demanding. There’s no room for rest, joy, or peace until everything is as we believe it needs to be. Smiles come not from the journey – only occasional successes.

And speaking of successes, there is enormous pressure to achieve the exact end goals and results we are lasered in on – any other outcomes can make us feel like failures.  This is accompanied by a foreboding sense that we’ll never really be able to perfectly meet our own expectations. Because sadly, we won’t. Perfection is a bottomless pit that always demands more.

On the other hand, being able to serve with excellence is rooted in an excitement for a big-picture purpose. We find ourselves going for a life-giving, healthy, and meaningful experience for those we are serving (and ourselves) in everything we do. The fuel for our excitement is a deep awe and respect for God that comes from sitting at His feet and soaking in His unconditional love and acceptance given aside from His need for our gifts and talents. We live for the thrill of seeing someone else feel more drawn to connect with God and trust in His goodness (glorifying His name) because of something we have done well – even if we never make any “big splashes.” Compromising on this high standard feels unimaginable.

And we don’t have to worry about whether we have all it takes to meet this standard because we know God will equip us with whatever we need to fulfill His purposes. If He’s not providing something, we can feel confident that He must not want us to be doing what He’s not providing for.

Serving with excellence creates no fear or stress over people seeing our mistakes, failures, weaknesses, and limitations. Because we feel no need to prove anything except God’s love and goodness, we are free to work through them with grace and humor. And we can also use them to our advantage as great opportunities to learn and grow so we can become the best we can be.

The work process, even when it involves seeing to meticulous details, following protocol, and enduring strenuous trainings can feel oddly light when done as a dance with Jesus. We feel safe to take breaks, naps, and Sabbaths when prompted by His Spirit because we know He is filling our tanks so we can finish everything He knows is truly important in His perfect timing. We can feel His smile as we enjoy seeing the high standards He is empowering us to meet come to fruition. Everything we do feels like creating a treasure-gift for God and others to make them feel as though they truly are worth every little extra effort made. There’s a great sense of fulfillment and satisfaction in experiencing God’s presence and delight as we work.

As far as the outcomes and results? These things aren’t up to us to determine or worry about. It doesn’t matter what God chooses to do with the “loaves and fishes” we bring to Him. When we are obedient to His ways, we can trust that He has a sovereign plan He is working toward and the things He has us do are just a small piece of a great big puzzle He sees from above. And we don’t need to.

In The Message, Colossians 3:23-25 says, “Do your best. Work from the heart for your real Master, for God, confident that you’ll get paid in full when you come into your inheritance. Keep in mind always that the ultimate Master you’re serving is Christ. The sullen servant who does shoddy work will be held responsible. Being a follower of Jesus doesn’t cover up bad work.”

But we don’t have to be afraid of whether we can do the “good works God planned in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10), no matter our life circumstances or limitations. In fact, according to the Apostle Paul, even difficult circumstances and limitations are many times the very things God uses to help us achieve His excellent plans for His wonderful purposes. “Each time he said, ‘My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.’ So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me.” ( 2 Corinthians 12:9 NLT) Perhaps we could reword our “Would You Rather” question about serving with either excellence or perfection in this way:

Would you rather try to do in your own strength what you will never be capable of accomplishing (perfection) or with God’s strength and empowerment, accomplish more than you could ever fathom or imagine (excellence)?

“In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
(Philippians 1:4-6 NIV)