5 Days of 5-Minute Devotions for Teen Girlsنموونە

The Comparison Game

"Oh, don’t worry; we wouldn’t dare say that we are as wonderful as these other men who tell you how important they are! But they are only comparing themselves with each other, using themselves as the standard of measurement. How ignorant!" II CORINTHIANS 10:12 NLT

Competition can be really fun. Sitting in the stands at a football game while you cheer for your favorite team is awesome. Playing your instrument at a marching band contest or competing in a tournament fills you with adrenaline, drive, and discipline. God made us to feel a level of competition because it is a motivator to be the best we can be. Winning is sweet.

But the comparison game we play with each other is a game we cannot win. Let me say it in a different way. No one ever wins when we play the comparison game. Can you guess why? It’s pretty simple. You can’t be anyone other than yourself. So when you compare your clothes, your skin, your body type, your voice, or anything else, with someone else, there’s no victory in it. Even if you go online or to the store that very day and buy the exact same outfit as hers, you’re still you, and there is always something else to compare. The comparison game is an exhausting, never-ending battle to fit in and stay afloat of ever-changing trends. The moment we buy the newest shoe brand or get the hairstyle that everyone else has, the trend has changed, and we are already out of style.

Don’t play the comparison game. It’s not a game that God created us to play. We are meant to encourage one another. Don’t try to be anyone that you’re not. Even the prettiest, most popular girl at school wishes she could change something about herself. Embrace who you are and who God made you to be. Chances are, someone has looked at you and compared themselves to what you have. Be the person who lifts others up and helps people feel comfortable in their own bodies. You are an amazing person, and God wants you to be exactly who you are. No one else.

Lord, thank You for making me just the way that I am. I pray that I can be someone who uplifts other people. Show me who to encourage today. Amen.