What Does “Winning” Look Like?

No one likes to lose. Whether you are playing a boardgame, in a race, a sporting match, a singing competition or an argument over some benign subject … we don’t like losing.

We strongly discourage “sore losers” — but we are equally disenchanted by “sore winners”. We “think” we teach our children to be good sports whether they win or lose, but we know deep in our hearts … that there’s an element of either pride or disgruntledness based upon the outcome of every competition.

Competition becomes a part of our lives from birth. Even an Easter Egg Hunt is a competition. Isn’t that a shame? AN EASTER EGG HUNT! Who gets the “PRIZE EGG” … Who finds the most eggs. I’ve seen kids knock down other kids to get to an egg hidden in the grass.

Think about that a minute.

James 3: 36 says, “For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice.”

An EASTER EGG HUNT! So antithetical to the very premise of Easter.

The point being … living to win comes from birth … “our peopleness.” It’s obviously in our nature to “prevail.” There are instances in the Bible where “winning” is referenced. The Apostle Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 9:24 that many run in a race, but only one receives the prize. He says to “run in such a way that you may win.” (In other words … do your best!)

I’ve got a T-shirt with a quote from Ruth Bader Ginsberg that says, “Fight for things you care about.” But my daughter reminded me that there’s more to that statement than what fits on the shirt.

“Fight for the things that you care about. But do it in a way that will lead others to join you.”

Ruth Bader Ginsberg, Supreme Court Justice

We should always look at such things in context. It’s not just about “winning.” It’s about not being destructive in our battles, our races, our competitions … “OUR ELECTIONS.”

I dare say … I DO NOT KNOW OF ONE PERSON WHO WANTS TO BE ON THE LOSING END OF THINGS. Do you? No, I didn’t think so.

Back to the passages in 1 Corinthians 9 where Paul speaks about winning. In the whole chapter, he is talking about “self-denial” and serving others … becoming what one might consider “less than others” in order “to win.” But in the long run, the prize to which Paul seeks to win, is the hearts/souls … COMMONUNITY … of others. He uses the illustration of the race or competition because the Greeks hosted an athletic festival (the Olympics perse) and the “peoples” were familiar with the concept of athletic training and WINNING.

Paul stresses that “his own training” to win was NOT for an aimless competition but he had practiced discipline, dismissed his own rights and freedoms, in order to win for the sake of the Gospel. He cited that he became what ever it took to “SERVE” all … that he might “win more.”

Paul’s winning didn’t seem to look like what his readers might see as winning. They were striving for a “tangible” prize … Paul’s prize was something that could not be displayed on a mantel or shelf or around one’s neck.

I submit that his mindset is much like that of RBG … he was seeking to win souls to Christ, his cause/his calling; and he admonished his readers to consider conduct and “motivation” that would prevail in that kind of race … toward that prize.

I’ve seen a good bit of destruction in my life all in the course to seeking to win. Many times, that winning had nothing to do with godliness … just PURE PEOPLENESS. In the end of those races … there was no clear winner. Very often, everyone involved lost.

I wonder if we could take some time to “sits and thinks a spell” to discern exactly what we hope to gain in the races we are running. There are passions and purposes and practical matters worth fighting for — worth caring about. But is there a “better discipline” that will not leave destruction along our path?

Is there a way that we can find dignity and grace as we each participate in this “HUMAN RACE”?