I can admit that I have. There's one person in particular that I've compared myself to a lot over the years. This person has a lot of qualities that I wish I had. She's better at socializing than I am, and she's witty as all get out.
For years I was so jealous of her. I felt often like I couldn't compete with her when she was around. And, yes, I had that thought, "Why can't I be more like her?" There have been many times I've questioned if I'm good enough. So, I'm not like her. Her attributes are completely different than mine.
A few years ago, I realized how ludicrous my thinking really was. Then, one question came to the surface that I was kind of ignoring: "Am I striving to be more like Christ?"
After that question is asked, nothing else matters. The only person that I, or any other Christian should compare themselves to is Christ and HIS character.
Are we humble? (Matthew 23:12, James 4:10)
Are we long-suffering and patient with others as God is patient with us? (Luke 15:11-32)
Are we gentle? (Matthew 11:29, Titus 3:2)
Are we kind, compassionate, and forgiving? (Ephesians 4:32)
Are we honest? (1st Timothy 1:10, Revelation 21:8)
Do we strive for purity? (Philippians 4:8)
Do we weigh every word we say? (Ephesians 4:28, Ephesians 5:4, Colossians 4:6)
We all struggle with some of the things I named above. As Christians we need to be always striving to be as much like Christ as we possibly can. Is it easy? No, but we do the best we can. When we mess up, we just dust ourselves off and try harder again next time.
We need to stop envying each other! What good does it do us to compare ourselves to anyone but our Savior? When we are looking at each other, we stop looking at Christ. Instead of comparing, we should encourage and push each other towards Christ.
God made us all unique and different. The burden of envy is a heavy burden to bear. Be happy in who you are and make Christ your sole focus-not another person.
