A recent study by the University of Michigan revealed that spending extended time on Facebook made people worried, lonely, and unhappy.
It also increased feelings of discontent as users compared their lives to others.
Says one researcher:
“We want to learn about other people and have others learn about us—but through that very learning process we may start to resent others.”
Our flesh’s tendency is to compare ourselves to others to see how we measure up.
This focus on ourselves can lead us to be discontent, lonely, angry, and jealous.
We see from 2 Corinthians 10:12 that it is not wise for us to compare ourselves to others:
“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!”
Rather than focusing on how we compare to others, we need to focus on who we are in Christ.
When we stop comparing ourselves to others and choose to believe our true identity in Christ, than we will not be discontent or jealous about others.
If people on Facebook brag about themselves or their family and we are tempted to get jealous or feel discontent about our lives, we have to remember what Paul said in of 2 Corinthians 10: 18:
“When people commend themselves, it doesn’t count for much. The important thing is for the Lord to commend them.”
Does the Lord commend us in Christ? Absolutely!
“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)
Since we have been recreated in our human spirit when we were saved, out spirits have been made like Christ. Paul refers to this as the New Man in Ephesians 4:24 where he states that:
“the new man, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.”
So, why worry how we compare to others, when we have a wonderful identity in Christ!
In our media-saturated age, image consultants have become indispensable.
Entertainers, athletes, politicians, and business leaders seem desperate to manage the way they are perceived in the eyes of the world.
These high-priced consultants work to shape how their clients are viewed—even if sometimes there is a stark contrast between the public image and the real person inside.
In reality, what people need—what all of us need—is not an external makeover but an internal recreation. Christ recreated us into new people, in Him—people with a new regenerated spirit, not just fixed up to look good on the outside.
May we ask God today to turn our hearts and minds away from ourselves and others and toward our Savior.
It’s only then that we will not be making wrong comparisons.
Blessings!
Pastor Ken Keeler, Director of Church Ministries