No matter how many times you hear this message, you can never hear it too much. God has made you completely different from anyone else. You can be confident in the fact that God makes no mistakes. You are free to be YOU. Be who God made YOU to be! Be in the season God has called YOU to be in. Be content. Be grateful for what God has given YOU, so you don't find yourself in the cycle of comparing  yourself to others.

Comparing yourself to others will often cause you to be unhappy with who you are. When you are unhappy with who you are, you are prone to be jealous.  You will find yourself wanting what other people have and wanting to be who other people are. Jealousy often comes from a lack of confidence and contentment. We can be so consumed with everything but what God has given to us. Some people I know, have a huge issue with social media because they compare their lives to other people’s "social media" lives. The biggest issue with comparing themselves is that some people’s lives, especially on social media, are staged. You really never know what other people are going through behind the scenes. There’s a quote that says “The grass is greener on the other side because it’s fake”. 

Even for people that genuinely live a happy life outside of social media, that does not discredit the happy moments you have in your life. Somehow we can find ourselves simply overlooking things we should be grateful for because our focus is on other people. Wherever there is an area of envy, there is always an area of insecurity or discontentment.  Currently, I am single and I do not have any children. Many of my friends are in relationships and have kids. In my heart, by the grace of God, I am totally content with being single. I love children but I know they are a lot of work. I enjoy babysitting (at times) and then giving them right back to their parents! In being content, I am not jealous of anyone in relationships and/or who have children. Why? Because I am content. I refuse to be pressured by society telling me I have to be in a relationship and have kids by a certain age. Also, I feel no need to compare myself to others.  I am confident in what God is doing in my life in this season. 

What I love about God is that He never compares us to other people. He is not a father that says “You need to be just as smart as your brother?” or “You need to be skinny like your cousin!”  Comparing yourself to someone else will never make you better. Think about it. If you compare yourself to someone who is better at something than you are, you become discouraged. If you compare yourself to someone who is not as good at something then you are, you can become proud and stop trying your best.

Instead of constantly comparing yourself to others, focus on being confident in and content with who YOU are. Be on purpose about God's will for your life, your family, your ministry, etc. Don't lose time being discouraged, bitter and jealous. The harsh reality is that someone will always be more attractive than you, more gifted than you, nicer than you, a better public speaker than you...the list goes on. That's OKAY. You don't have to be the best at everything! Just be the best at being YOU and fulfilling your God given purpose.

Remember: Confidence will empower you! Comparison will disable you!

Hebrews 13:5 reads “Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Pray with me: Lord, help me to be content. Fill any areas in my heart that make me feel like I am lacking something that someone else has. Forgive me in any area that I have been coveting what other people have due to my own insecurities and discontentment.. Help me to focus on being who you called me to be and to appreciate  what You have given me. My confidence is in You. In Jesus' name, Amen.