Okay or Outstanding: Choosing Generosity Over Selfishness and Despair

A lot of time in life, “okay” is good enough. When I get my haircut, I don’t need “outstanding”, I just need “okay.” (I realize that may not be true for everyone)

Sometimes, “outstanding” is important. I’m not okay being just an “okay” father to my children, I want to be “outstanding.”

I think that a proper perspective of okay and outstanding is a great way to develop contentment and generosity in our lives, while also finding victory over despair and selfishness. Here’s the simple formula:

When you GIVE, be satisfied with nothing but outstanding.
When you RECEIVE, be satisfied with okay.

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Generosity is the practice of giving your best to others, even when it requires you to sacrifice or to be a servant. Contentment is the art of accepting less than you expect, knowing that it is most likely more than you need.
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Selfishness is the act of hoarding your resources at the expense of others. It is the polar opposite of generosity. It is the result and root of sin, and it flies in the face of a Christlike ethic. The solution to selfishness is to give generously, never be satisfied to give someone else less than your most outstanding efforts.

Despair is the state of believing the lie that you do not have all you need. Of course, this despair requires you to ignore not only the promises of God, but also His history of provision. Despair causes you to see the gifts of others as less than sufficient and below your expectations.

The solution to despair and selfishness is to be completely satisfied with gifts that may seem to be just okay, knowing that God will use those gifts to meet your needs in ways that surpass your greatest expectations.