Each day, we walk into a battlefield of comparison. From perfectly posed Instagram pictures to carefully worded Facebook posts, we compare our worst moments to the seemingly “best” moments of others. We scrutinize what our friends and other women are doing through a tiny filter of social media and belittle the work God is doing in our own hearts.
Without realizing it, we complain to God that He is doing a mightier work in someone else’s life, and we neglect our own calling. With distracted eyes, we glance at the story God is writing in our neighbor’s life and desire it more than the one He is writing for us.
The other day, I was scrolling through social media and realized that in a span of five minutes, I had played the comparison game on multiple levels. As I was scrolling through, I quickly noticed that my heart was quick to compare and even faster to forget my own calling when I envied the calling of my sisters in Christ.
Social media is often the tapestry the enemy uses to display before me all I think I should be doing and to whisper the lie in my heart that I am not enough.
Trying to be someone we weren’t created to be is like trying to wedge a circle into a square. The pieces don’t fit together, and they never will. If I were to squeeze a circle into the mold of a square, it would take away from the shape it was made to have. The purpose of that circle would be pointless. That is exactly what we try to do when we attempt to be someone else. God never created us to be a carbon copy of another person.
We were meant to be a reflection of our Creator (Gen 1:27). From the very beginning, God has stamped His unique thumbprint on each of our lives and has breathed a unique purpose within each one of us. Attempting to be someone else will never bring the fulfillment and joy God created us to have in Jesus.
A few weeks ago, I found myself on the beach. Living only thirty-five minutes away from Naples, Florida, I find that I tend to run away and escape to the beach when I need to slow down and rest. With the sand clinging to my feet as I walked on the shoreline, allowing the waves to crash over my legs, I was determined to find a shell. As I walked and picked up shell after shell, one thing was evident – no two shells are the same. Some had chips, some were colorful, some were flat, and others were curved. These shells reflected our Creator and they each had a story to tell. They didn’t fight for attention; they were just how they were made to be.
That day on the beach, those shells reminded me that I would never fulfill His purpose for my life when trying to be like my neighbor. Jesus never told us to mimic our sisters, but to imitateChrist our Savior (1 Cor 11:1, Eph 5:1-2).
I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to miss out on my calling by setting my gaze on “she” instead of “He.”
You want to know what’s awesome? Our sisters are also created in His image with a unique purpose. Their calling will also look different than the person to their right or to their left, but as we follow Him faithfully and do the work He has set out for us to do, we will see comparison flee and we will begin to cheer each other on. Let’s be each other’s cheerleaders.
God has called you to do a unique work for His kingdom. He has marked you with His thumbprint to reflect Him in your home, your local church, and your work. As a woman with passions, desires, and longings, take a step back to evaluate what God has woven into your soul to do for His glory. It is a good thing for us to look at all “He” has done for us before we look at all “she” is doing. Fix your gaze on Jesus and be faithful to do what He has called you to do.
This post was originally posted on biblicalwoman.com, where I am a contributing writer.
