Wesley Challenge_Day 15

Do I thank God that I am not like others?

SUNDAY – 01.17.21 · Colossians 3:12, Luke 18:9-14
We can draw many insights from Jesus’ story in Luke 18. Chief among them is this: we are not to compare ourselves to others. Comparing our situation to others’ is not healthy. Whether thanking God for not being like others, or wishing God would give us what others have, we are discrediting God. What God desires for us is not our being better than another, but that we become the best possible individuals we’ve been created to be.

⇒ To whom do you most often compare yourself? Is there one particular person, or group of people, that most often draw this tendency out in you? Why is that the case? When you compare yourself to others, are you more likely to find yourself lacking in some way, or do you tend more to feel superior and grateful that you are not like them?
⇒ Identify the “triggers” for the times you compare yourself to others. Perhaps certain contacts’ Facebook posts leave you feeling somewhat self-satisfied, or conversely feeling inferior to them. Perhaps a club you’re involved in causes you to feel “less than” others in some way. Remove these triggers from your life for a period of time, and assess the result.

Prayer: God, teach me to see others as you see them—through a lens of love, compassion and mercy. Help us always remember that we are all lost without you.