Just Too Good

Have you ever been told that you are too good at something? Have you ever been denied an opportunity because your level of skill was too high for the position? It may seem like a far fetched concept, but people are occasionally overlooked because they exhibit talents beyond the simple fitting of qualifications. I remember an instance in which my mother was not hired for a particular job because she was “over qualified”. I don’t know if it’s quite the same concept, but I was once denied a job because I was “too persistent”. I simply called to find out if my application was received and when interviews were going to take place. Today, I was reading an article about a 9-year-old boy who can throw a 40 mph fastball. He is so good that his youth baseball league refused to let him pitch. When he took the mound despite this refusal, the other team left and forfeited the game. Not allowed to play, the boy is being punished for his gift.
Have you ever heard the expression “too good to be true”? Frequently, we doubt facts because the truth seems to fall too far beyond our expectations. I wonder how many people don’t find love because they believe that the individuals they are interested in are “too good” for them. Some people allow themselves to be abused because they think a better life is not within their reach. I myself have feared applying to certain colleges because they seemed to be too elite for me. I know of people who don’t attend church because they believe that their sins are unforgivable and that they could never achieve the level of greatness needed to be a Christian. While this may seem like the other side of the coin, people are being refused love, colleges are being refused students, and the kingdom of God is being refused servants because they are thought of as “too good”. While we are not worthy of God’s grace, nothing we can do on our own saves us. Ephesians 2:1-10 talks about how we are made alive in Christ. God’s gift of salvation is for everyone. No one is too good as everyone sins. And, God does not consider himself too good for us.