Comparing Leads to Envy
“Don’t compare yourself with others. Just look at your own work to see if you have done anything to be proud of. You must each accept the responsibilities that are yours.” Galatians 6:5-6 ESV
“Don’t compare your weakness to their strength.” – Nitin Namdeo
Harmful. For you and the other person.
Dismissive. Of you and the other person.
Lacks compassion, empathy, healing, or growth for you and the other person. A relationship killer.
Feels good, perhaps, but accomplishes nothing for anybody, except envy and strife. Many things that feel good are not good.
Comparing always lacks information that is not our business. It’s between them and their Father, who knows all.
You’re giving someone, probably a figment of your imagination, space in your head rent-free that harms you. It won’t hurt them a bit.
We have no idea what a person has gone through to get where they are. None. I envied someone with lots of money, who still had their spouse, until I found out they lost a child to addiction. They would trade their money for their child.
Comparing keeps us focused on the wrong things, and not on the right things—who we are becoming in Christ.
Some compare losses as if one loss is greater than another. “I lost my mom.” “I lost my hamster.” Yes, this happens frequently because we’re all at different stages in our walk. Let go. Don’t let someone’s ignorance or awkwardness harm you.
What good is comparing in any form? Shall I compare my loss of my husband to a veteran who has lost his legs? The great losses of natural disasters to a domestic abuse victim? They are all devastating.
Comparing my success is just as futile. My idea of success is raising a loving and healthy family, while another is joining Samaritan’s Purse. Which person is more successful? It reminds me of 1st Corinthians, where there was big trouble! Tongues or prophecy? Teaching or evangelizing? Paul says, “The greatest is love.” Be watchful of comparing. Put the focus on loving and see what happens.
Whether a believer or not, I find Galatians 6:4-6 very wise counsel: “Don’t compare yourself with others. Just look at your own work to see if you have done anything to be proud of. You must each accept the responsibilities that are yours.”
Musings
Here’s a wake-up call: “We all fall short of the glory of God.” The beautiful thing is that when we surrender to not comparing, our Father shows us things we didn’t know about ourselves that are essential and life-giving. After all, he made us.
Prayer
Dear Father,
It’s true. Compared to your son, we fall terribly short. With him, we become like him with no comparison. Remind us that the most significant accomplishment is love.
Help us remember, when comparing to others, that we don’t know the whole story. Please help us refocus on you, where success truly lives. You made us all with unique talents, goals, and accomplishments, designed just for us and for your glory.
Amen.
Prayers and Musings of a Black Sheep 