Mediocrity for the Glory of God

"So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."
-1 Corinthians 10:31

One of the taboo words of American Christianity has become mediocrity. No one wants to be labeled mediocre. We devote entire television programs to individuals that we categorized as "extraordinary." After all, mediocre means that you're average. Average people are all right, but they just lack a certain coolness. At the heart of it, most of us would probably be considered "average." We may have a special skill or some quirks or play a really mean trombone, but at the heart of it we all have the same basic needs, wants, and limitations. That's why our culture has created superheros and "extraordinary" people in order to escape the reality of our ordinarity. As a culture, we have made not being average into an idol.

In many ways, the church has bought into the lie that we must be "extraordinary" and break the evil fetters of mediocrity. Some times there are abuses and things against which these Christians are reacting, such as a lack of excellence and a disdain of putting forth good and diligent effort in what we do. To a large extent, however, it seems that we have bought into the lie of legalism that says God is pleased by our excelling. Although it may not be verbalized, the message put forth by many Christians and churches is "God hates second place." Giving glory to God is equated with giving a hundred and ten percent and being the best at whatever we do. In this construct, the glory of God is really focused on our performance. God is given glory when we do. When we break out of our mediocrity and graduate valedictorian of our school, man is God getting the glory. When a Christian athlete makes it big and is suddenly the shining star in the sports media and the new face of Jesus for sports fans everywhere, God is really beaming! When there is a struggling athlete bouncing between the major and minors maintaining a godly, Christian testimony- maybe not so much. Not only will he not make a splash in the news media, but many Christians will cringe and pretend not to notice him.

Giving glory to God is an issue of the heart. We give God glory in all things when we treasure Him and enjoy all things in life in relation to Him- whether the sweet or the bitter things in life. What we need to be careful of is making mediocrity into an embarrassment and a vice. God is just as glorified with the worship pastor at a small church with modest musical skills as he is with the professional-rock-star-turned-worship-leader at the mega church in the big city. The issue is not so much what we do as it is the manner in which we do it. When we talk about glorifying God, the question we must ask is this- do you make Jesus look beautiful in your mediocrity? When the old country pastor preaches, is he filled with love for Jesus and a faithfulness to the God who called him and the people to whom he ministers? God does not necessarily call us to excel. It is the Spirit who gives gifts to the church "as He wills." We must not allow culture to define us and influence our theology. As Paul exhorts believers in Romans 12, we must not conform to the world by be transformed by the Word of God. God's desire is not that we come at life at a hundred and ten-percent, but that we encounter everything in our lives as a God-worshiper.