Me With You

We often see competition as war; a battle to be won over the enemy. Rivalries grow, producing “win at any cost” mentalities. It becomes us versus them, good versus evil, winner versus loser. 

At its origin, the word compete means to “strive together;” to push to a level of play or skill that we cannot attain on our own. Competition does not exist without a partner, whether a teammate or the opposing team. The relationship is complementary, not adversarial. 

Let’s say there are three first basemen on the softball team. Only one can get the starting nod. Would the other two hope their teammate commits a couple of errors and goes 0 to 4 at the plate? Yes, they might hope their teammate fails. Would it be good for the players on the bench? Possibly. Would it be good for the team overall? Definitely not.

This is principled in the New Testament, when there was an apparent conflict between the followers of Apollos and Paul. People took sides, creating an air of discontent and contempt. They were competing against, not striving with, their fellow believers. The result: any house divided became weaker, not stronger. 

Paul addressed the situation by saying, “STOP IT!” He warned them that Christ would not be happy with or put up with those kinds of attitudes. Those people needed to unite and hone each other as iron sharpens iron. Only then, would their impact be the greatest.

Whether on the court, in the home, or in our churches, we are better together.