The #1 thief of joy
If you know me, you can probably guess what my favorite social media app is. It starts with an “I” and ends with a “gram”. Yup. Instagrammmmmm. (Extra M’s added by me for effect)
I enjoy it more than Twitter (honestly, I’m kinda an old woman who isn’t very good at Twitter, but I keep trying) more than Facebook, more than Snapchat. (I deleted my Snapchat awhile back.) I like seeing pictures of people. I like looking at what my friends are up to, what people I don’t actually know are up to, try to get a glimpse into the famous people I’ve seen in movies, and if I’m being honest, maybe a little inspirational quote to get me going.
But here’s the thing I’ve found with Instagram. I compare myself to people on that app more than I do in any other scenario in life. How else would I know about the success of someone I barely talk to? How else would I realize what I’m missing without seeing it somewhere else?
This time of year is especially trying with everyone posting about all the resolutions and goals and wins from the previous year. If you don’t pay attention and watch your heart, you can be filled with jealousy, resentment, shame, or comparison. I know this is something I have to stay on top of when it comes to this time of year.
I don’t want to assume, but I’ll take a bet you’ve been guilty of this too. Sometimes we do this without even realizing it and begin to feel jealousy toward something that we are seeing on a screen, sometimes toward a person we don’t even know.
I know I have been guilty of this and had to repent several times and unfollow quite a few accounts because of this very thing. When I start to feel bad about myself because I can’t get up and go to Bali whenever I please, or have the career freedom that someone else seems to have, or the beautiful kitchen covered in subway tile and marble countertops, or the relationship that some other couple has, I am hurting myself.
Friend, your energy was not meant to be wasted on thinking about how to wish you could be who someone else is or have what someone else has. You see, us humans don’t do well when we focus on LACK. We were meant to thrive. Thriving does not include jealousy and caparison.
Sister, I am saying this because I dealt with this for YEARS. I am not exaggerating. My life was dictated by who I thought I needed to be because of the caparison game I played with those around me. It led me to eating disorders, destructive relationships, depression, anxiety, and a life full of fear.
Proverbs 14:30 says this: A tender, tranquil heart will make you healthy,
but jealousy can make you sick.
If you feel like you are caught in this place, here’s the good news: you don’t have to stay there. Right now, unfollow those accounts that make you feel like you need to be someone else. Ask God for forgiveness for letting your heart covet what someone else has and make a list of the things you are thankful for. Your praise is a weapon. It can cut through those feeling of inadequacy and pain. Worship changes our focus from what we don’t have to who we are in HIM.
Comparison is the #1 thief of your joy. Don’t let caparison be the reason you miss out on one of the most powerful things you possess. Your joy is so much more valuable than spending time wishing you were someone else.
Whenever those feelings of jealousy or comparison rise up in you, take a moment to thank God for something. I promise you are in a much better place than you feel. Remind yourself of God’s goodness and practice gratefulness in your life. You will see things change as you take conscious steps to trust God and to renew your mind! Baby steps are better than no steps. You are amazing and you can do this!
Confession:
I am enough. I have been made worthy through the sacrifice of Jesus. I have all that I need in Him, and whatever I don’t have that I need, God will provide for me. I am a chosen daughter of God and have been saved from darkness and been brought into the light. This is my hope. I will celebrate with those who celebrate. I am in the middle of God’s will for my life. I am who He says I am.
Prayer:
God, help me trust you and be ever grateful for all you have done for me. Help me to trust you when things happen that I don’t understand. I know you are good, and you do not withhold good things from your children. I am your child. I ask you for peace for my heart, and control over my thoughts. Thank you for helping me. Amen.
