Go Ahead...Raise the Bar....and Fly Over It

God certainly set the bar high for us when He said words like this: "Love your enemies!” “Have peace in the midst of storms!” “Overcome evil with good!” "Be perfect as I am perfect." "Don't judge and you will not be judged." "Have faith and don't doubt." "I've made you MORE than conquerors." He didn't give us much "just-get-by" wiggle room, did He?

I recently heard the twin Benham Brothers interviewed on TBN and Fox News discussing their new book AND the backstory from being dropped from HGTV before their new show, "Flip It Forward", set to premiere in October, was ever aired. The show would have helped families purchase homes they otherwise could not afford. They had warned HGTV before signing that they hold to their faith and wouldn't compromise their standards. "I feel HGTV got bullied," David Benham said. "There's an agenda that's out in America right now that demands silence, especially from men and women who profess Jesus Christ and hold to his standards."

I was surely impressed by their standards. They raised the bar in their lives. And, now, their businesses and missions have become even more successful without an HGTV presence. Isn't that just like God Who defends, approves and gives us the ability to soar above the circumstances?

God didn't create us for mediocrity. He created us in His image -- He makes the impossible, possible. He makes darkness, light. He makes can't, can. There's nothing mediocre about Him. So, His expectations for us are extremely HIGH! Why should we be satisfied with a just-get-by mindset, when we have a Father who is unlimited and abounding in love and favor toward us? And, if He didn't think it was possible, He would have never set such high standards for us. Everything we do should be done with excellence. When we are asked to go one mile, whether it be in a job, a project, or a service, we should be ready to go the second mile, too. That's raising the bar. Yes, our Father gives to us in an above-and-beyond measure, so His lead sets the bar high for us. It means we'll have to stretch out of our comfort zone, but I promise you, the benefits of stretching gives us rewards beyond our greatest expectations.

There’s just something about being a world-class athlete that can shoot himself above that bar and conquer it. And, there’s just something about a God-class, solid, undaunted and unchained Child of God who doesn’t settle for “so-so” or settle for "just a little compromise". We should be the standard for this world because we are bar-raisers. The higher we go and the higher we conquer…..others will want to follow our lead!

God didn’t set the bar high so that we would fail. He did it to show how high He can take us! Let's stop being satisfied with the status quo -- let's raise the bar, and be all He destined us to be and do!