What God has taught me through CrossFit part 3: COMPARISON and PROGRESS

As I was running during a WOD a few weeks back, I had a moment with the Lord that leads me to share “What God has taught me through CrossFit, part 3: COMPARISON and PROGRESS.”

We recently made a move to a new city and began working out with a new community.  This obviously has been a transition, but we have begun to develop relationships with some wonderful new people in our class. However, my wife and I noticed something particularly strange during our first weeks working out.  There is one individual who shows up every day, attempts movements, but simply is not honest when it comes to the white board.  The whiteboard, for those not familiar with CrossFit, is simply, well, a whiteboard used to track workouts for the classes and to record scores.  For this person, it seems the whiteboard is what they show up for.  Over and over again my wife and I would leave the box and while driving home we would remark to one another, “Did you see what this person said they did? That’s ridiculous – there is absolutely no way.”  I think the CrossFit community as a whole values honesty, and this person wasn’t being honest.  On top of that, this person was using the whiteboard as a comparison when they simply should have been focused on completing the movements correctly.   However, what God spoke to me that morning was not a problem with the individual; rather, he showed me a problem in my heart.

You see, deep in the inner workings of my heart, there was a sense of anger that this person would be perceived as doing more than me.  I had in a sick way begun looking to this person as the measurement for my success.  Now, for those who have ever met me know that I am a slightly competitive person – ok – very competitive person.  There is room for competition in CrossFit, but this type of sick comparison is simply unprofitable.   Teddy Roosevelt once said, “Comparison is the thief of joy,” and for me comparison was ripping the joy out of my workouts.  When I first started CrossFit  I knew I couldn’t keep up with anyone, so for each WOD, I went into my own little world and simply did the best that I could.  In fact, hardly ever did I look at the whiteboard to see where I stacked up.  Suddenly, months later I am looking to someone who cannot even complete movements to find my acceptance.  How warped is that?

So that morning, God basically asked me, “David why are you looking to this person for validation?  Who cares what people think?  Are you living for their approval or for your progress?”

Before I could finish the 400m run, I was like, “Wow God – guilty as charged.”  What I realized pretty quickly is this is exactly what we do in our Christian walks too.  We look to those around us and try to validate our walks based on where we stack up. We are always trying to measure up, and as long as we feel like people think we measure up, we are content.  Problem is: this is not what God has called us to.  In fact, the Scripture demands holiness.  Holiness is simply not being a little better than the next person – holiness is only found in God alone.  He is the standard – not humanity.  When we are simply satisfied with pulling out our measuring cups and comparing, we are not progressing towards Christ and this is sin. 

So as I processed through this I realized that comparison had begun to steal my joy.  The fact of the matter is that no matter how fast or how strong or how toned I get, there will always be someone who is ahead of me – someone faster, someone stronger, someone who looks better.  I didn’t start CrossFit to be the best.  I started and have continued CrossFit to progress in my fitness journey.  So to it is with Christ…if we are honest with our walk with the Lord, there will always be someone more spiritual, more knowledgeable, more loving, and more like Christ.  We didn’t start following Christ to be the best – Christ is the best.  We started and are continuing to become more and more like Christ – He is the standard and it’s His glory we are after.

So in redefining success for Crossfit, I have learned to look at PROGRESS.  I have begun questioning myself, how have I progressed as a whole and how have I progressed with certain movements?  The reality is that I cannot do any movement half as good as some people, but I sure can do them better than when I started.  During my first month of CrossFit I tried to do a pull-up – it was an utter failure – I wasn’t even close to doing one.  Thankfully there exists resistant bands and using the largest one, I could complete some pull-ups.  I then remember trying to learn how to perform a kipping pull-up and that was humorous for everyone present.  Fast forward to today, and I can complete strict pull-ups with no band.  Obviously losing several pounds helps, but it truly was a progression.  It wasn’t like one day I couldn’t do pull-ups and then suddenly I could.  Instead it has been a process - the process leads to progress.

CrossFit has taught me the value of progress.  Suddenly success isn’t trying to beat everyone at the workout – it is committing to do my best, day in and day out, and to commit to the process.  I compare myself to myself and see that there is progression.  I get better and stronger each day and that is a measure of success in CrossFit.   Perhaps many of us would benefit greatly with this thinking in our spiritual lives.   The successful Christian life should not be defined by comparing ourselves to others – for in that we will always fall short of the true standard.  Instead, we should seek to progress in our walk toward Christ.  As we grow closer to Him, He transforms us, and hopefully who we are today is somewhere closer to Christ than when we started.  Instead of defining the wellness of our spiritual life by what we do, perhaps we should begin defining it by how we are growing in love toward others or we growing in our love for God. 

May our minds capture a picture of the holiness of God and squash our attempts to match up with comparison and may this vision catapult us to a progression in our walk with God so that we are becoming more and more conformed to the image of Christ.

2 Corinthians 3:18 “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord as in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”