Thank God I’m Not Like You // The Prison of Comparison
It’s shocking how often our suffering is self-inflicted. In fact, sometimes the worst thing the Devil does is wake us up - then we take it from there! And in our day and age, there’s one specific way we shoot ourselves in the foot time and time again: Comparison. We live online, sharing the highlights (and lowlights) of our lives. We’re more aware than ever who our literal and metaphorical neighbors are, what they have, and exactly how we fall short or outshine them. Comparison may seem harmless, but it’s a serious threat. It’s a prison that will rob us of the life we were made to live. So it’s time for a jail break! It’s time to get freedom from Comparison’s toxic mindset! It’s time to start seeing ourselves and others as Jesus intended!
Generally the first thing that comes to mind when we think of comparison is envy. But there’s a comparison prison cell that’s even more insidious: Self-righteousness. We search out comparisons that make us feel better about ourselves because, “At least we’re not like those people!” But what if Jesus called us to view ourselves as the “Chief of Sinners?” How do comparisons change if we see our own sin as a log and another’s sin as a speck of sawdust?
