To the perfectionist, the high achiever, and to the one who seeks, and often finds, success, I want to say this:

Be careful.

Because as much as the enemy will attack you in your weaknesses, he will also attack you in your strengths–he will attack you in the very areas where God has blessed you.

I say to you today:  Don’t let him have his way!

There are some things in this world that can never be satisfied.  And just as a fire will rage and burn down everything in its path, just as the bare ground soaks up water like it never was poured, and just as the grave will never stop pursuing you … So will it be with the leech that can take away all your victories.

We are warned about this in the Old Testament:

Proverbs 30 15 “The leech has two daughters. ‘Give! Give!’ they cry. “There are three things that are never satisfied, four that never say, ‘Enough!’:  16 the grave, the barren womb, land, which is never satisfied with water, and fire, which never says, ‘Enough!’  

Being excellent is a badge of honor.  It is what makes people what they are, but it must never be allowed to be attached to anything beyond doing it for God’s glory.  Pursue that.  And pursue it with all your heart knowing these two things:

#1.  No one knows you better than God does.  No one has your back better than God does.  And no one can fill you better than God can.  So stick with that.

It is the very reason that Jesus told Nathanael “I saw you under the fig tree”.  This wasn’t some one line verse in an ancient text.  It was Jesus saying that He actually SAW into Nathanael’s pain. 

John 1 47 When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false.”  48 “How do you know me?” Nathanael asked. Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”  

You see, the enemy will sometimes influence us to think He is a distant Father who has no connection to us.  But God is the God of relationship and pursuit.  He cares about what you care about.  He hates when people mess you over.  And He hates when you mess over those He loves.  Never forget that He cares about what you care about … and also never forget that He gave you gifts and excellence SO THAT YOU CAN ENJOY THEM.  Do not let the enemy steal your victories or your joy.  He has no right to them.  Deny Him access.  Jesus SEES you in your victories and defeats.  KNOW that He SEES you, SEEK HIM IN RETURN, and keep it simple.

#2.  Never, ever, forget what God has for you, or how He truly feels about you.  And with that, never forget why you try to be excellent.  It is not to please the insatiable thirst of the leech.  It is not so that you can cower down in front of the enemy of man and wilt under his pressure.  God puts excellence on you so that you can be a testimony.  But more than that, He puts it on you so that you can glorify Him with every step that you take.

Zephaniah 3 17 The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.”  

We love because He first loved us first.  We succeed because He is the great I Am.  And we pursue excellence because it is who He made us to be.  And nothing more.

Do not feed the leech.  He brings friends with him.

Do not cower down to the enemy.  He is seeking to destroy you and all that you love.

Do not put the pressure of the world on your shoulders, you are not strong enough to carry it.

Purpose to love the Father and to be excellent for His glory.

Pursue His Kingdom and His Righteousness.

Be filled by His spirit and His wisdom.

And Live out the call on your life for the right purpose.

It is in these things that you can be excellent.

In The Name of the Father and the 

Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

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Coach J