COMPETITION: Part 1

Don't bother just to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors.
Try to be better than yourself.
--William Faulkner

"In running, it doesn't matter whether you come in first, in the middle of the pack, or last. You can say 'I have finished.' There is a lot of satisfaction in that."
-Sam Mussabini

If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, for each one should carry his own load.

 Galatians 6:3-5 (NIV)

            Running is a simple sport. It requires very little equipment. All that you need is a good pair of running shoes, shorts, a T-shirt and a watch. Every run begins with the click of the watch.

            My standard training run is a four-mile course. After I have stretched to loosen up the old muscles, I start the timer on my watch and take off. Because I have run this course so often I know where all the ½ mile and mile markers are. As I pass each one I glance down at my watch to see how I am doing. It tells me if I am slow, fast or on pace. My goal is to gradually improve my time. Every time I run I am running against the clock.

            There are several annual runs in our community that I participate in. These runs are of various lengths over different courses. Usually at these races there are a hand-full of pretty serious runners. The rest of us are there for the experience. Before I start a race I determine a time that I am shooting for. For example, in my first ½ marathon I set a goal of finishing in two and a half hours. So when the gun goes off I click my watch and start running. As I pass each mile marker I check my watch to see how I am doing. I don’t gauge my race by the runners around me, but by the time on my watch. I like to start near the front of the pack. My adrenaline is pumping so I don’t like feeling trapped in the middle of the crowd. Very quickly the faster runners pass me. I know that if I increase my pace to keep up with them I will not have enough energy to finish the race. Instead I let them go by. At the end of the race it doesn’t matter how many runners finished ahead of me. What matters is if I reached my goal.

            Competition is a big part of running. It allows us to test ourselves against others. When it is kept in its proper perspective it is a good thing. Competition challenges us to push our limits. It motivates us to work hard. It actually helps us achieve more than we thought was possible. But when it becomes all about winning it can distort our perspective.

            In the race of life the only person that we need to compete against is the one we see staring back at us in the mirror. We can use others to motivate us to strive harder, but at the end of the day the question is did I meet my goal. A wise Rabbi once said, “When I get to heaven God is not going to ask me why I wasn’t Moses. He is going to ask me why I wasn’t me.”

            Paul gives us some great insights into running against our personal clock. He begins by telling us to take a good look in the mirror. Many of us have a distorted view of ourselves. Our tendency is to view ourselves in a more positive light than is warranted, although at times we see ourselves more negatively than we should. We tend to overlook our faults and focus only on our perceived strengths. Paul warns us against developing an inflated view of ourselves.

            Arthur was a gifted runner. He had been blessed with stamina and power that allowed him to excel in long distance races. Throughout High School he was a star on the cross-country and track teams. Although he didn’t win every race, he was consistently among the top runners. After High School Arthur went on to college. As happens to all of us, life got busy and running took a back seat in his life. A couple of years later some friends challenged him to run in the Chicago Marathon. He thought, why not? I can do this. So he pulled out his running shoes and started preparing. His training wasn’t as consistent as he would have liked but he reasoned that he was still in good enough shape to make a good showing. He set a goal of finishing in less than 3 hours and 10 minutes, which would qualify him for the Boston Marathon. The competitive fires that he had felt in High School began to burn bright. He started talking boldly about what he would do in the marathon. The day of the race found him filled with excitement and only a little apprehension. He had never run a marathon before. All went well at the beginning of the race. He quickly settled into his pace and was feeling good. He even began to think he could do better than his goal. He passed mile 20 tired but in good spirits. At mile 23 his legs cramped, forcing him to stop. He walked the last 3 miles of the race. He finished the race in 3 hours and 45 minutes; a great time but well short of his goal.

            When we develop an inflated view of ourselves we set ourselves up for failure. Natural talent and giftedness can take us only so far. Without a regular reality check we soon discover that we have run out of steam. Just as this is true in the physical realm of our lives, it is ever truer in the spiritual realm. Paul warned the Galatians that thinking they were more spiritually mature than they actually were was very dangerous.

            Throughout my years of ministry I have often had to face a spiritual reality check. This usually occurred following an extended period of outward success. I would begin to feel very comfortable with my spiritual leadership and then I would hit a wall. God would do something to make me take a more realistic view of myself.

            There are several warning signs that should alert us to an inflated self-image. The first is the feeling that I cannot fail. Like the runner who arrogantly announces that he will win every race, we begin to believe that whatever we do will be successful. We don’t consider failure to be a possibility, let alone an option. We begin to buy into the lie that we are too big or too important to fail. The twin sister to the feeling that I cannot fail is the feeling that I am better than everyone else. My opinions are worth more. My actions are of greater significance. I desire to be honored as the best. Underlying both of these warning signs is the warning sign of denial. We strongly deny anything that threatens our false sense of reality. As one comedian put it, I reject your reality and assert my own. When we are challenged with information that makes us face reality we get angry and fight back. Paul says that when we yield to ego inflation the only person we are deceiving is ourselves.

            One of the ways that we can guard our hearts against ego inflation is to engage with a small group of trusted friends. A true friend is someone who will hold up the mirror of reality with love and grace. They don’t do it to tear us down, but ultimately to make us stronger. Like a good coach, they can point out our weak spots and help us move in a new direction.

            When I began my ministry as a solo pastor I knew that I was going to be in trouble if I tried to go it alone. I began to pray for God to reveal to me a couple of men who could both encourage me and hold me accountable. He gave me two men who agreed to meet with me on a weekly basis. It took a little time for the three of us to develop an appropriate level of trust. We had to get to know one another on more than just a superficial level. Once trust was established we were able to talk about all aspects of life. Through the years these men have supported and challenged me. They have not been afraid to tell me when I was off base or unrealistic. They have been one of my greatest assets on this journey of life.