Basis

It is interesting to watch individuals and teams compete.  As I read one reporter's analysis of a 24-hour race, I found myself caught up in his admiration.  The team that finished second was excited and proud.  The team manager's words were something along the lines of “I would rather finish second in a race like this than win easily.”  The race had been hard fought.  Both sides faced unforeseen adversity and had worked hard to overcome the challenges.  Either side could have one.  In the end, one did, barely. 
This is rarely the norm.  Many want others to lose as much as they want to win.  Some believe that it is only in climbing over someone that one knows the true taste of victory.  The very idea that one would stop to help another, especially at the risk of victory, is a foreign thought.  Yet, rally drivers have been known to do just that.  They help each other get to safety and then go back to competing.
In contrast, Wall Street has a very different image.  Metaphorically, “those 'fathers,' burning up with jealousy, sent Joseph off to Egypt as a slave.” (Acts 7.9)  They might not win, but other would surely lose!  Both sides of the equation are equally important.  If I do not feel good, nobody else should either.  If I do not have something then nobody should.  The mantra applies across the spectrum of living; if I do not, then you must not.
In the race, I listened to God's voice whispering in and among the roar of the engines.  Life it never about the goal, it is about how you walk the path.  Life is not measured by what you receive; it is always about what you give.  Winning is a process not a destination.  For every individual, winning is found in choosing, never by heritage or standing.  Winning is a gift not a result.
With today dawn, I see an uncharted road.  You and I are in a race.  We compete in our way.  Exercising freedom will determine our place and finish.