You win, ergo, you're a winner. Participation is what matters. It took 24 more years of living. It took the coach bolting up from the mattress three or four times a night with his T-shirt soaked with sweat and his teeth rattling from the fever chill of chemotherapy and the terror of seeing himself die repeatedly in his dreams. Marriages come apart because too often couples only define their marriage by what they do - not who they are.
Life becomes empty and hollow.
James tells us that there is much more to being a Christian than what we do. Being is much deeper. It relates to character, who we are, and how we make a life. Doing is closely tied with activity, accomplishments, and tangible things - like salary, prestige, involvement, roles, and trophies. Being, on the other hand, has more to do with intangibles, the kind of people we become down inside, much of which can t be measured by objective yardsticks and impressive awards.