The Dangers of Comparison

We live in a world where people compare everything. People compare phones. There is the iPhone vs Android debate. People compare their wardrobes. There is the what is fashionable and what is not fashionable debate. People compare residences. There is the school district debate. I could go on, but you get the picture. The thing about comparison is that it is so ingrained in us, that we do it subconsciously. However, comparison is very dangerous. Here are three things that comparison robs you of:

1. Comparison robs you of your contentment. Comparison reminds you of all of the things you think you deserve. If you stop comparing your life to others, you can focus on the blessings that you do have.

2. Comparison causes you to engage in unnecessary competition. Comparison causes you to make purchases you typically wouldn’t make because you want to keep up a false image to win the comparison game. Maybe you compare your lifestyle with someone else's lifestyle. So now you feel the need to spend money that you don't have in order to "keep up" with them. The truth is, you are often playing the comparison game with yourself. Often times, the person you are comparing yourself to is not even participating in the comparison game.

3. Comparison robs you of your joy. Focusing on what others have or what others are doing causes you to lose sight of the things that bring you joy. God is the source of our joy, but when you are focusing on others, that means you are taking your eyes off God. This leads to frustration and discontentment.

As you can see, comparison can be a very dangerous thing. More importantly, comparison is not God’s best for your life. God desires that you learn the art of contentment. Paul said it this way "I have learned to be content in whatever state I find myself in, whether I have little or whether I have much" (Philippians 4:11). He could say this because God was the source of his contentment. When God is your focus, you don’t have time to compare your life to others because you are busy pursuing his purpose for your life. As always, stay rooted in God.

Verse of the Week:

"Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves".

Philippians 2:3 (ESV)