Under-Promising,
Over-Delivering
My work experience in the corporate world over the
last twenty-five years has taught me a number of important lessons.
One of the most valuable with respect to dealing with
customers-clients for the delivery of goods-services is the art of
setting a reasonable and agreed-upon expectation and then exceeding
that expectation. This time-tested principle is known as
“Under-Promise, Over-Deliver.”
Are you seasoned enough to remember your parents
pulling the family car into the neighborhood gas station to fill up
the tank? Yes, I am referring to the days of “Full Service” before
“Self Service” ever entered the mind of a proprietor. No one had to
exit the car…except for a restroom visit. The smiling attendant
would rush out and ask, “What’ll it be?” Upon hearing the words
“Fill ‘er up!” he would engage the pump, check tire pressures and
fluid levels, and wash the windshield…all while the pump was
running.
Now, those days are long gone, but the principle
remains. The best way to secure repeat business (and thereby grow a
business) is to exceed the expectations of your customer on a
regular basis. Individuals and businesses that employ this proven
success formula will always have an edge over those who take the
customer for granted.
First question: Since scripture represents the Lord
God as One Who both Promises and Delivers, to what extent does the
“Under-Promise, Over-Deliver” formula apply to Kingdom business?
Some form of the word “promise” is used over 100 times in reference
to God setting an expectation for his people. Derivatives of the
word “deliver” are used even more often to describe our Lord making
good on his promises.
Next question: Is God in the business of
Under-Promising? Hardly! According to Peter, God’s promises to his
people are “exceeding great and precious” (2 Peter 1:4). Is it
possible for the human mind to get a grip on the magnitude of any
promise that transcends greatness? Phraseology of this sort
precludes Under-Promising as a descriptive option. And we dare not
think of this as Over-Promising, for that would imply God might at
some point set an expectation that was beyond his ability to
meet…much less exceed! What God is in the process of doing when he
issues promises and sets expectations for those who trust him is
simply beyond the ability of the English language.
The word “precious” (Gk. timios) signifies
that which is honorable and esteemed due to its great value or
price. It is no accident that Peter used the same root to refer to
the precious quality of the Chief Corner Stone of the
Kingdom, the Lord Jesus Christ (1 Peter 2:7). Thus we see the
inextricable and incontrovertible link between the precious Person
of Christ and the promises that are an extension of it. The only way
to diminish a promise is to limit the capacity of the One who gave
it. Enough said!
Peter further explains to us that these exceedingly
great and precious promises, having been embraced by the believer as
a means of escape from corruptive lust, are now the building blocks
upon which we partake of the divine nature. The measure by which we
internalize God’s promises is the same measure by which God is able
to internalize himself in us! Show me a man or woman that radiates
the Lord Jesus in character, countenance and conduct, and I’ll show
you one who is daily ingesting the truth of God as his or her
essential spiritual food!
Question three: Is God in the business of
Over-Delivering? Absolutely! Paul affirmed to the Ephesians that God
was able to do exceeding abundantly above all that they were
able to ask or think (Ephesians 3:20). Last time I checked, that was
the very definition and essence of Over-Delivering! Again, the
apostle encouraged us with these words: “Eye hath not seen, nor ear
heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which
God hath prepared for them that love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9). It
sure sounds to me like Over-Delivery by our Lord will be the
inevitable outcome of our sojourn to the Promised Land where we
shall see him face-to-face!
Practical question: When was the last time that you
and I as believers, in agreement with our gifts and calling,
actually over-delivered to those we serve? Preacher, when did you
last deliver fresh expository insights in Holy Ghost power that
provided spiritual grist for God’s people? For those who minister,
teach, exhort, give, rule and show mercy, when was the last time the
exercise of your spiritual gift(s) took you into uncharted waters?
In stark contrast to the
entrepreneur who under-promises and over-delivers, and the God whose
exceeding great and precious promises are exceeded only by his
ability to over-deliver on them, is Satan. A thoughtful reflection
upon Genesis 3 shows us that Satan, in speaking with Eve,
over-promised and under-delivered! The promise of a god-like
existence resulted in spiritual death and slavery to sin! And so it
has been for the last six-thousand or so years. The lust of the
flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life will always
promise more than they can deliver, and then deliver that which is
an affront to God and ruinous to the soul!
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