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There is a canyon of difference between doing your best to glorify God and doing whatever it takes to glorify yourself. The quest for excellence is a mark of maturity. The quest for power is childish.
Max Lucado
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Interpretation

What this quote means

This quote emphasizes the difference between selfless striving for excellence and selfish pursuits for power.

Max Lucado contrasts the pursuit of glorifying God, which is framed as a mature and noble endeavor, with the quest for personal power and recognition, which he sees as immature and self-serving. He suggests that true excellence arises from a selfless dedication to a higher purpose, rather than a toxic focus on self-aggrandizement.

Themes

ExcellenceMaturitySelflessnessPowerGlorification

In practice

Example use cases

During a motivational speech about leadership, one might quote this to remind the audience of the importance of serving others over seeking personal gain.

More from Max Lucado

Just when the truth about life sinks in, His truth starts to surface. He takes us by the hand and dares us not to sweep the facts under the rug but to confront them with him at our side.
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When you're full of yourself, God can't fill you. But when you empty yourself, God has a useful vessel.
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There's an antidote to our fears- trust. If we trust God more,we can fear less.
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We will never be cleansed until we confess we are dirty. And we will never be able to wash the feet of those who have hurt us until we allow Jesus, the one we have hurt, to wash ours.
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One of the things I discover a lot in marriage counseling is the husband or wife trying to get their spiritual thirst quenched by their partner; I think that's a real common mistake that we make.
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Fear creates a form of spiritual amnesia
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