_PNG.png)
what is it that makes us worship at the throne of competition?
is it genetic? is it learned behavior? is there something breathed into us from the spirit of the creator?
is it evidence of evolution…the whole survival of the fittest thing? oh my. perish the thought…
is it what is needed for us to rise to some kind of peak performance and be all that we can be? is it a necessary ingredient for success and achievement and making the most of ourselves?
do we really need to have another team to beat…or another player to challenge us…or a threat of losing…to inspire us to do more and better things than we ever dreamed possible? or is it possible to reach our potential (or close to it) from a purely intrinsic motivation?
just thinking today.
there are some who will extol the virtues of competition…the pure greatness of a cutthroat contest. an argument could be made that the innate competitive spirit is what drives countries to battle…and that without that special competitive “something” deep inside of us, we could never keep others from taking advantage of us.
look…stepping on others on your way to the top is just part of life…and not for the faint of heart. right?
isn’t competition…whether in sport or music or academics or wherever…the refining fire that kids need to be funnelled through, in order to find where they belong in life’s great pecking order…or where they learn the cruel lessons required for the toughening of skin and the necessary passion needed to overcome their personal obstacles?
and yet, there are others among us that abhor competition. they see it as the destroyer of self image and the weapon of beat down for the weaker among us. they see the competitive spirit as the antithesis of christlikeness and the ultimate opponent of love and mercy.
they bleed for the little guy. they hurt for the abused and the forgotten. they root for the underdog. while some are taking pictures of their kids perfecting their home run trot or adjusting the limelight for the best angle, there are others that long for the kid on the bench to just have a moment. they are weary of being on the losing end of the competition… because they never win.
so i’ll ask this question: do the life and words of jesus shed any light on the debate?
(thanks to http://www.lastkidpicked.com for the pic)
Comments