Armodoxy for Today: God Competing

Competition is another word for the Olympics. The best of the best come together on the world stage to demonstrate their athletic and physical prowess every few years. Yesterday we spoke about the competition for the prize, citing that the real prize, far from the gold and silver, is the love of God. There is no competing for His love, but the question is does God have to compete for our attention and our love?

It is rather a strange visual against the backdrop of the Olympics to imagine God in a competition for us! Unfortunately, there are many forces that compete against God and even more tragically they win! Yes, they call into question the phrase “Almighty God.” Sure, He’s powerful, but the “gold” He is competing for is our hearts. He’s running a race and the other athletes are fear, hatred, materialism, self-glory, self-pity, apathy, to name just a few of the contenders.

At the finish line, the trophy is us! It not that God isn’t fast enough to win, rather, the obstacles along the way – the hurdles – are put up by us! Just as God gets close enough to us, we set another hurdle for Him to overcome. Meanwhile, the other forces, including materialism and all of its lavish accessories, run without obstacles, and certainly we don’t put any hurdles in their course because they each provide us with a false sense of security.

Armodoxy is the testament to the true securities that God blesses us with, whether courage, spirit, love, strength, or focus, they are the blessings that help us win the victories of life.

The Olympics give us a chance to view the competition all around us. We don’t compete for God’s love, but He competes for ours, every day with the beauty and wonder that He sets up all around us.

From the Armenian Church’s Book of Hours we pray, We thank You, O Lord, our God, who awakened us from the rest of sleep by the grace of Your mercy. Awaken our mind for justice before You, so our eyes will see Your salvation. Come and dwell in me. Amen.