June 24, 2021 – Click here to listen
When it comes to being a good artist. I always felt I was borderline. However, judging from the financial success that I had in selling my artwork, one would conclude I must have had something going on because I was very successful in that arena.
My problem was I could not seem to ever finish a rendering to my satisfaction. Because I kept seeing areas that could be improved, I just kept working on it and working on it and could never declare, it is finished! I would only stop and move on to another project when I became so disgusted and bored that I could not continue. This left me feeling devoid of satisfaction although my customers were delighted with it and clamored for more.
I’ve read of other far more accomplished artists than me from practically every field that experienced similar feelings. Eric Clapton for example would not initially release his all-time best-selling album “Unplugged”, except to a hundred thousand or so people because he saw that it was not perfect and thought others would notice it too and dislike it. Unplugged sold millions and millions of albums throughout the world.
We see various people trying to achieve perfection in sports, journalism, you name it. It seems the smarter ones were tuned in to the impossible dream such as legendary football coach Vince Lombardi who once said that “Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection, we can catch excellence.”
Jesus said as He finally died on the cross, “It is finished!” And it was indeed perfected and finished. We cannot live the sinless life that Jesus lived, but we can chase His perfection and catch His excellence. When we die and after the judgment, we will finally be able to say, “It is finished and then and only then will be we be perfected!”
So try to be like God and catch His excellence, because you are his own dear children.
Ephesians 5:1
Love others as Christ has loved us. He gave his life for us, a sweet-smelling offering and a sacrifice to God.