“Wow! That one kid in gym class seems to have the sweetest new pair of shoes, like, every month!”
“She is so smart! I’ll never be as smart as she is, and it really bugs me.”
“Omigosh! He is such a loo-hoo-zer! Just look at those loser clothes and that loser backpack and that loser lunch.”
Maybe you’ve never said any of these things. But you’ve probably at least thought something like them. The comparison game—we all play it. He’s got more. She’s got less. He’s not as cool as I am. She’s way cooler than I’ll ever be.
People call it the comparison “game” because, like a game, there’s no real-life purpose to it. Playing it doesn’t benefit anyone, including you. In fact, it’s just the opposite—playing the comparison game robs you of life.
Jesus said something very, very cool in John 10:10—“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” Part of experiencing that full life Jesus wants us to have is by experiencing contentment. Do you know that word? It means to be happy with what you have and who you are.
The Bible makes it clear we shouldn’t stand in judgment of other people (see Matthew 7:1-5, for example). This means we shouldn’t play the comparison game to identify students who either have less than we do or—in our eyes—are less than we are.
The Bible also makes it clear we shouldn’t waste our time desiring other people’s stuff (see Exodus 20:17, for starters). In this way, we play the comparison game to identify students who have more than we do or—in our eyes—are more than we are.
Here’s the cold, hard truth: Throughout the rest of your life, no matter who you are, or where you live, or what you do, there will always be—
• People who have more stuff than you do, and people who have less stuff than you do
• People who are cooler than you are, and people who are less cool than you are
• People with more fashion sense than you, and people with less fashion sense than you
• People who are more talented than you are, and people who are less talented than you are
• People who are more popular than you are, and people who are less popular than you are
• People who are luckier than you are, and people who are less lucky than you are
Deal with it! Be happy with who you are and what you have—they’re all gifts from God anyhow!