Did you know that there’s a dangerous game God’s people play each day? This game is not played out on a court, in a ballfield field, or in a bright sports arena. No, this game is played in the mind. There are no captains or positions, this game requires no special uniform, and there are no opposing teams. This deadly game has no winners. In fact, all who dare to play this game are hopeless to lose every time. This is the dangerous, destructive, and deceptive game of comparing yourself to others.
For many people, this hurtful comparison game begins the very second they roll out of bed and pick up their phone. In our culture, social media fuels the fires of the comparison game by overwhelming us with stories, posts, and pictures of people who appear to have their lives completely put together. We see people who have beautiful homes, well-dressed children, and nice automobiles. We are inundated with images of our friends going on vacations, eating at nice restaurants, and enjoying a happy marriage. We read about people who seem to love their job, and their life seems to be “picture perfect” in every way possible. Meanwhile, we might feel like our life is falling apart, our children aren’t nearly as neat, our house is outdated, our job is boring, and we haven’t been on a nice vacation in years. How can their life be so perfect and our life be such a mess? This, you see, is the deadly trap of the comparison game!
Ironically, we often remind our children to just be themselves and resist the urges of peer pressure to be like everyone else. However, if we are truthful, we would have to admit that we often neglect to take our own advice. We often discourage ourselves by measuring our worth by everyone else. Sadly, this phenomena is frequently seen in the church. If we are not careful, we can overlook our own value to the cause of Christ because we are comparing our-selves to our brothers or sisters. This certainly hindered the efforts of Corinth. In 1 Corinthians 12, there is the implication that some were guilty of weighing the impact of their spiritual gift based on the spiritual gift of another. Additionally, some local churches fall victim to the deadly trap of the comparison game by always looking at the congregation down the road and measuring themselves by their efforts and successes. God’s people must learn to stop playing this game!
God, you see, has created each of us to be special and unique! We all have our own individual talents and abilities. God isn’t asking us to be our neighbor, our friends and family members, or even our brothers and sisters in Christ. No, He is calling us to be-come more like Him as we are conformed “to the image of His son” (Romans 8:29). Studying God’s Word will help us to embrace our own individuality, and it will challenge us to stop playing this negative game of comparing ourselves to others. So, if you struggle with this tendency, stay on the lookout for more articles on this subject. Over the next few weeks, we will be unpacking some passages from God’s Word to highlight some reasons why we should all stop playing the comparison game. But until then, working on being you and try to be more like Him!
Brandon Baggett is a former Pulpit Minister for Eastern Meadows Church of Christ.
