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November 3, 2011

::thoughts on comparison::


recently i was taking a drive and found myself stuck in traffic. a drive that should have taken 45 minutes turned into an hour and a half. as i moved further down the road i realized that there was a car that had hit the guard rail. he was fine- outside of his vehicle talking with the police officer. he was also completely off the road.

the only reason traffic was so delayed was because everyone was watching what was happening on the side of the road.

as i drove by, and took my turn rubber-necking, i realized that this is exactly what we do in every day life.

we often get caught up in what she is doing over there.

how is she parenting her children?
is she attachment or parent-led?
does she spank or gently guide?
does she stay at home or work outside the home?
does she keep her house clean and laundry caught up?
does she homeschool?
does she exercise? is she skinnier than me?
does she cook every night?
is her home decorated and maintained?
are her children wild or obedient?
do her clothes have puke and snot on them too?

we spend so much time evaluating what everyone else is doing that it slows us down in our journey to the destination we have been called to.

it happens to everyone.
we compare and then because of those comparisons we self-loathe.
we spend time criticizing ourselves and get caught up in the- but i can never be like her- mindset when we should be pushing forward.
god did not call us to mimic those around us.
god called us to live like him and that may look a little different from one person to the next....and that's okay. press on dear friend. press on.


I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus...  phillipians 3:14

4 comments:

  1. great reminder!
    comparison is the death of contentment and the thief of joy!
    words i live by...or try to! :D
    blessings!
    xo

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  2. This is so true! I learnt the hard way just to stop comparing and judging others. It took my 3 month old son being in ICU to realise that we really have no idea what is going on in other peoples lives and we should never judge. I'm sure many people looked me, dishevelled, crying and shaking as I travelled to and from hospital, judging me in a negative way not knowing that I had either just left my son and didn't know if I'd see him again or was on my way to hospital and didn't know what I was going to find.

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  3. Oh my are you speaking to me! My thing is constantly comparing myself to this perfect mom image I have in my head. And boy does it get me down! Just this morning in Sunday school, we were talking about God's calling for us....as individuals and the thought just hit me that in comparing, to anyone, even that image in my head, pulls me away for where and what God called ME to be.

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