Raise the Bar

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As i interact with people and read things around the web about the church and society as a whole, I hear a lot about success and the victories that are being won.

I’m grateful for the stories of life change, growth, and advancement, but I can’t help but wonder if we’ve set the bar too low.

If all we ever do is make a way to prove that we’re being successful, we’re never actually being successful.

I can’t help but wonder if we’ve set the bar so low (in the church world and in society) that we’ve made success the only possible outcome of what we do.

We have to be realistic, but we also have to shoot a concentrated target.
Rationalizing how we hit the target when we actually missed the target does nothing but give us a fake sense of accomplishment.

We have to raise the bar.

We have to be willing to seek God, hear God, dream big, and shoot for a big goal.
We have to be honest with ourselves and with those around us when we fail to meet the goal or hit the target.
We have to raise the bar so that we’re not always finding a way to rationalize every effort into a win.

No matter what you’re doing, raise the bar…

Expect the best from your kids and be honest with them when they miss it.
Decide to make a difference even though you’re inexperienced.
Set a lofty goal as a church leader and be willing to do some honest evaluation afterwards.
Set a high bar in your finances and be honest with where you messed it up.

Raise the bar.

Do you notice this as well?
How can we raise the bar?

16 responses to “Raise the Bar”

Matthew Erxleben

July 5

One thing I’ve noticed is its easier to raise the bar when you aren’t scared to fail. Maybe we don’t raise the bar because we are afraid we wont reach it.

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1. Jonathan Pearson
  
  July 5
  
  Great point! Fear holds us back. Thanks.
  
  Reply
James

July 5

This is definitely something I see all the time, at church and everywhere. I understand wanting to feel good about our accomplishments, but sometimes that feeling of disappointment is what fuels us to do better next time. There are ways of letting volunteers, employees, and even ourselves know that the goal wasn’t accomplished without being harsh. Not everything can, nor should it be, a win.

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1. Jonathan Pearson
  
  July 5
  
  Agreed! Thanks for sharing.
  
  Reply
Brandon

July 5

I totally agree with you. No matter what I accomplish in my daily life, I am never content. We always have somewhere bigger to go!

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1. Jonathan Pearson
  
  July 5
  
  Amen!
  
  Reply
Eileen

July 5

I think also when we “settle” for things at a certain level we miss so many blessings. Often the next level can only be achieved with a little more faith and trust. When we step beyond where we’ve placed the bar, I think God shows off and shows us things we never would have seen or believed could happen.

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1. Jonathan Pearson
  
  July 5
  
  Great thought, Eileen.
  
  Reply
Suzanne

July 5

Glad I ran across this. I’ve been thinking in this direction lately. I think the problem with some of us, myself included, is that we can’t even think big enough to raise the bar. We can’t blame it on lack of creativity when we have the power of the Holy Spirit, but we can blame it on all of the clutter we let get in the way of hearing Him. I appreciate your challenge.

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1. Jonathan Pearson
  
  July 5
  
  Wow. Great point. I think you’re dead on. Thanks for visiting and sharing!
  
  Reply
ThatGuyKC

July 5

This is a great call out, Jonathan. I agree that we collectively have set the bar for success too low. Excellence isn’t even in our vocabulary any more.

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1. Jonathan Pearson
  
  July 5
  
  We may say it, but its meaning carries little weight. Thanks man!
  
  Reply
Jason Vana

July 5

I sometimes wonder if there is even a bar in some places. You walk into churches or businesses and there is no sense of excellence in what they do, there is no drive to make a difference other than having a nice Sunday service. It seems status quo is the bar.

We definitely need to raise the bar! Great post Jonathan.

Reply
1. Jonathan Pearson
  
  July 5
  
  I think you’re last sentence is true. Just getting by or just good enough is often the bar. Thanks, Jason.
  
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Dan Black

July 7

I have not noticed it but its a thought I have not thought about in a while. I think we are called to always raise the bar. Making success only a stepping stone to the next thing. I also think it each persons responsibility to raise the bar on their performance.

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Kristen

July 31

We need to think less about just satisfying the people in our communities. We should set the bar so we go so far as to actually inspiring our friends and families. If we just get by, by coexisting in with the rest of our people, who will go and make the difference?

Reply

JONATHAN | PEARSON

Raise the Bar

16 responses to “Raise the Bar”

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