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Excellence in the Details

The Queen of Sheba saw the palace he had built (1 Kings 10:4)

Even the architecture must have been magnificent. Every detail mattered. It’s one thing to build something great, but it’s another thing to maintain it. It wasn’t just the architectural designs that sparkled, but the care and maintenance of those designs. Such skills had to be taught and passed on through various levels of management, cascading down to the level of the facilities engineers and groundskeepers. Solomon’s vision to build and his instructions to keep that level of excellence in the upkeep of the palace—as well as the surrounding structures of the city—must have been a source of national pride. It stands to reason that Jerusalem was the cleanest city in the Middle East. It had to reflect the God who had directed His people there, protected them on the journey, and empowered them to take the land.

One of the biggest challenges of a culture of excellence is combating the mindset—it’s an ingrained philosophy of life millions have learned—that we should only strive for “good enough.” We can look at floors that don’t shine and harbor stray flecks of dirt and shrug that it’s good enough. We can look at the dingy toilets in our restaurant and see water spots on the mirror or smell air tinged with a musty odor and walk away thinking, it’s good enough. We can apply that to every area of our lives, but if we’re going to shoot for good enough as the bar of achievement, then we are destined to fail. I don’t want good enough results, good enough attitudes, or even average results and attitudes. The enemies to excellence are good enough and average.

The question is: Are you paying attention to the details in what you’ve been given? Are you striving for excellence or satisfied with “good enough?"