by Carol Bond

We use competition in a variety of ways in our ministries, and it is a major motivator in the business world. Managers are in a unique position to know the importance of character and attitudes about competition. While competition is not the enemy, it is often seen as the enemy when we observe co-workers who have character weaknesses compete. Have you heard someone say, “I’m just too competitive,” as if that were an excuse for the selfish attitude and heart conditions that have been revealed in a competitive situation? The following is an excerpt from an article first published by Iron Sharpeneth Iron Publications in Volume 3 of The Brain for Youth Leaders. Use it as a jumping point for your thoughts on competition.

Competition—from the Latin com and petere which means “to seek.” Webster defines competition as “emulous contest; rivalry” (emulous means “ambitious to equal another”). The American Heritage Dictionary adds “to strive with another.”

Healthy—“indicative of sound rational thinking or frame of mind” is one of the definitions given by the American Heritage Dictionary. Webster says that health is a “state of being hale or sound in body, mind, or soul, esp. freedom from physical disease or pain.”

Healthy competition should then be an ambitious contest against a rival that keeps the competitors sound in their bodies, minds, and souls. The rival could take many different forms. It could be another person, another group of people, the clock, your own personal best, or a goal that has been set. Marty Heron, former director of Northland Camp and Conference Center, has often said that “competition is a tool, and a tool that is used incorrectly can become a weapon.” A tool that has been used as a weapon is not a bad tool. It shouldn’t be eliminated from the toolbox, but the person who is misusing it should be redirected! For a tool to be properly used for the job it is intended, procedures should be set and training should take place. Let’s explore the purpose, procedures, and training needed for the tool of competition. Competition is a tool that can be used for various purposes. It can unite a group, challenge individual growth, foster teamwork, encourage creative problem solving, and provide opportunities for learning good communication. It can teach integrity, fun, fairness, grace under
pressure, sharing of resources, risk taking, courage, and stewardship. Competition enhances the value of relationships by cultivating the best from each person. Life is full of competition. It is a daily part of our lives, is constant, and is unavoidable. We all need to learn to win and lose with grace and poise. One cannot deny the destructive potential of competition, but the possible advantages make the tool of competition irreplaceable.

Consider some biblical examples of competition, both good and bad.

There was competition between Cain and Abel, Jacob and Esau, and Joseph and his brothers.
There was an organized contest between David and Goliath and between Elijah and the prophets of Baal.
In the New Testament, Jesus told parables that address competition. Luke 16 (the parable of the unjust steward) and Luke 19 (the parable of the stewards whose master went on a long journey) are both interesting in the context of competition.
Paul uses competition in many contexts to explain the Christian’s walk. Consider 1 Corinthians 9:24–26, Philippians 2:14–16 and 3:12–14, Hebrews 12:1, 2 Timothy 2:5 and 4:7, and Galatians 2:2 and 5:7.

God calls each person to live out his full potential, and He challenges him to keep improving his personal best (Philippians 3:12). God does not measure an individual in comparison with other individuals. In fact, we’re taught that it is foolish to do so (2 Corinthians 10:12). Consider the parable in Matthew 13 of the seed that brings forth varying amounts of fruit or the parables in Matthew 25 and Luke 16 of the stewards’ rewards.

We use great care in teaching someone to use a valuable power tool, emphasizing safety and stewardship, demonstrating the use of the tool, observing the person as he uses the tool, and helping him make adjustments. We observe again before sending him out to use the tool on his own. Should we do any less with competition?

Have a plan. We can set up competition to be healthy or unhealthy by how we set up the event. Rules need to be fair, participation should be high, it should be safe, the goal should be clear, and the event should be fun. In order for it to be fun, the score will be close, the rules will be simple, the event will look big, it will move fast, and it will end with participants wanting more.

Have a goal. There are hundreds of viable goals for your competition. Among them are physical health, selflessness, excellence, unity, individual growth, teamwork, and integrity. If you don’t have the goal in mind, you may find yourself careless with the tool, and someone might get hurt!

Know the tool. It is often misused. If the only way for an individual to win is for the rival to fail, it won’t drive participants to excellence; it will cause them to hope for weak opponents. If the competition glorifies self, it violates God’s laws (1 Corinthians 10:31). If winning is valued over participation and growth, anything less is failure. When the risk of failure is too great, willingness to try new things and take creative risks will be inhibited. When the pressure to win is too intense, it hinders interpersonal skills, narrows the community, and results in self-aggrandizing. Carried into our society, this results in a loss of acts of kindness and trust, impatience, and even aggression in places like the highway or in lines for seasonal sales. The idea that an opponent is not the enemy and that the real competition is to excel as a steward of your talents is one that is not natural. It must be taught. If competition can be aggressive without individuals becoming aggressors, competitors could truly thank the Lord together for the opportunity to bring Him glory through the game.

Living by Christian principles isn’t a handicap; it should in fact be the factor that frees us to excel. The phrase “it’s not whether you win or lose, it’s how you play the game” isn’t just a consolation for losers, it is truth! God’s scoreboard is eternal. Every word, every action, in every setting of our entire lives will be judged by His higher law; and the ultimate goal of the “game” is to bring Him glory. We need to demonstrate good character in competitive situations and teach that competition is God’s plan for us in life and in the workplace, in every situation revealing a heart that desires to bring glory to God.