Who Do You Compare To? #Godspeak

I'm so excited to announce that I have *finally*
found a church in Albany to attend.
Granted, I don't remember its name.
But I went this morning and fell in lovelovelove.

The message was the third installation
of a three week series called "The Comparison Trap."
It was a good, concise message.
I wanted to share it and add to it.

It's natural for humans to compare.
I compare myself to your finances,
you compare yourself to my creativity,
we compare ourselves to his grades,
he compares himself to her work success.
All through life, we compare ourselves.



We base our success off of others through those comparisons.
I might be doing worse than my doctor,
but I'm sure as hell better off than Nameless Homeless
Man #4 on Avenue Q.
What a crappy way to think, right?
You know you're guilty.



And we may say, "Oh, I'm not jealous of his success."
But deep down, that ugly little green
monster is just snarling and waiting to pounce.

What does the Bible say about comparing ourselves?
What does the Bible say about envy?

Some heavy stuff.

"If you are bitterly selfish and jealous
and there is selfish ambition in your heart, don't
cover up the truth with boasting and lying. For jealousy
and selfishness are not of God's kind of wisdom. Such
things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic. For wherever
there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will
find disorder and evil of every kind." James 3:14-16

Whoa.
Biblical smackdown.
Selfish ambition - do you want to get that A because
you want to do better than your friend?
Do you want to be in pre-med for the glory, just to have
others ooh and aah over you?
Do you want that new pair of high heels
that are too expensive for you just to be able to flash
a fancy name around Bloggersville?
We've all been there.
God doesn't like it.

In Matthew 25, Jesus tells a parable
about a lazy servant and the blessings he misses out on.
The pastor used this for his message.

Moral of that story: It's not important how much you have,
it's important how much you do with what you have.

It's not about spending $120 on a fab dress from Shabby Apple
to look cute; it's about buying that $20 accessory to rock
out three new outfits with that $5 dress from Good Will.

It's not about donating all your money to the less fortunate;
it's about donating the time you can to helping them have at
least one day with a warm meal.

Such a good message, and a refreshing one at that.
As women (not to generalize), I think more often
we're guilty of comparing ourselves.
Especially when it comes to how thin we are,
or how pretty we are,
or who's outfit is cuter.

It's time to start being thankful.
1 Thessalonians 5:18 reads,
"Be thankful in all circumstances,
for this is God's will for you who belong
to Christ Jesus."

What more do you need?
God places you in a location,
a career, a relationship, a church
- all because He can use you there.
Don't focus on what you don't have.
Focus on what you do.
Don't be jealous because your friend has a higher GPA -
be thankful that God uses you to do
missionary work while maintaining a steady GPA.
Don't compare your desk job to
Miss Thang in NYC - God needs you
to witness to those with the time to listen.

So who do you compare to?
Yourself alone.
God calls us to be better than that.
Stop comparing yourselves.
It's a trap.
Satan's trap.
We're above all of that.



(don't forget to check out the giveaway going on!)