"It's not a competition!" That was a regular rebuke I used as a parent. Being a sibling is not a competition. Being a child in our family was not a competition. It's not possible for you to win the Nancy or My love. You already have it, and just because you have it doesn't mean that your siblings have less of it. It's not a competition.
I always find competition frustrating. The issue for me is not that we shouldn't compete, we should. However, competition should be reserved for those moments and situations where it's intended and appropriate. Otherwise it should be avoided for good reason. Of course sporting events should be competitive. I'm a huge St. Louis Cardinals fan. I hope they win every game this year (even though they've already lost one.) However, I think the competition for the best parking spot and quickest exit is a bit over the top for most people.
I think there should be competition in business and industry. They should have to earn my dollar by giving me the best product at the right price. However, I think that there are some large retailers that have driven mom and pop stores out of business and that has hurt our economy in the long run. Sometimes the consumer listens far too much to the advertisers and ends up with a below average product at a below average price and believes they got a deal. What they got was a product that won't last as long as mom's would have or be serviced in the way dad would have.
I think there should be competition in politics. I want to be served by the politician who has earned my vote by putting the best policy platform out there. However, I don't think a politician has presented a platform when they have degraded the character of their opponent. I see that as the behavior we were supposed to outgrow in third grade. It doesn't endear me to anyone.
I enjoy reality TV for the competition. Top Chef America, The Biggest Loser, Top Gun, and others are good shows with competition based upon skills learned, and advantages earned. However, any show where the competition is about love (The Bachelor and The Bachelorette) is an embarrassment to those who watch. Love is not a competition.... most of the time.
When it comes to church, love is a competition. Churches are not in competition. We're all on the same side. If a church is seeking to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world, we're on the same side. If a church is seeking to save souls, get people to confess Christ, preaching they should be born again, we're on the same side. On the other side is evil, the devil, satan, injustice, oppression, loneliness, hurt, bigotry, prejudice and so forth. That's the real competition.
This coming Sunday my sermon will be on 1 Corinthians 9:19-23. Paul realizes that, in order to win people to Christ, he needed to adjust the method of delivery. The message never changes, but the method does. New McKendree has 3 worship services to offer 3 different methods of worship. What would a fourth look like? I'm still working on the message for Sunday but I'm excited about where this is headed. We're going to seek a competitive advantage against the enemy of the church.
3 comments:
I liked what you had to say, Dave. Especially, the part about the church and how we "should" all be on the same side. I didn't know that you had a blog until now. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for sharing the blog. I believe as you do, love is not a competition. I love all my boys the same. I show it differently to them according to their personalities. With that said, I think that is how we approach presenting God's word to others. I like our diversity. I, too, am interested in seeing which way God leads us next.
I loved the way you presented these ideas to the congregation. As part of the conversation, here goes:
What would happen if the 5:00 Saturday service were more contemporary and held at the South Campus? Or what if there was a contemporary service on a Thursday night? Could the traditional service begin at 8:30 to give some time for you to still visit with us and get to South?
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