Have a Comparison-Free Summer: 5-Day Plan to Beat Body Envyনমুনা

Waterparks are fun, aren’t they? It’s a whole universe designed for wearing only swim attire. It’s next to impossible to don a coverup between rides. You must pretend it doesn’t feel strange to walk around so exposed.

My favorite waterpark activity isn’t the rides. It’s people-watching. This pastime is a reminder that most women don’t look like swimsuit models.

But I have to be careful. My heart does a curious thing. I will watch 99 women walk by without incident. Then comes the one. She looks like she stepped off a suntan lotion billboard. And my insecurities swell.

Oh, how I wish I looked like that in a swimsuit.

Comparison sends me spinning. What does she eat? How does she work out? Has she always looked like that?

How’d she get that body?

I know nothing about this woman, yet suddenly I’m obsessed. Not over who she is or her story. No, I don’t really see her; I see a match for what culture tells me a woman’s body should look like. Instantly I abdicate my Christian calling to love, choosing to objectify her instead.

Yikes!

And it makes me miserable. As I walk around the waterpark, I feel a new awareness of my body’s flaws. Comparison won’t let me feel comfortable in my skin. I competed in an imaginary beauty contest against this woman and lost. Now, I must hide and sulk. If I brood well enough, I may be able to spoil the trip for the whole family.

But my shame comes from the ugliness of my heart, not my thighs. Comparison is a nice word. We slap our wrists and say, “Oh shucks, I should stop comparing!” But the Bible uses different words. Scripture talks about covetousness and envy. These are two ways we fall into subtle sin every time we compare.

Envy holds a touch of hatred. She has what we want, and we kind of hate her for it. At the same time, covetousness looks like desiring what another possesses. I want her abs. I want a body like that, a husband like hers.

With sin comes shame. We feel its weight like a wet beach towel. Culture tells us that our shame will disappear when we get a better body. Then we’ll win the fictitious contest and feel good again. But scripture tells us the only solution for shame is the Gospel. Let’s take a look.