Belovedness by Sarah KrogerSample

Comparison vs. Celebration

“Comparison is the thief of joy.” - Theodore Roosevelt 

Confession: My name is Sarah and I’m addicted to social media. I’m not proud of it. In fact, I loathe it. But it’s the truth. I think far more people are addicted to it than care to admit it to themselves. Don’t get me wrong, social media can be used for good. But far too often it paints a picture of perfection that is unattainable, unrealistic, and can lead us to the trap of comparison.

Comparison has infected our society, and social media only exacerbates the problem. It’s a game you can’t win. You can’t be the person next to you because you weren’t made to be the person next to you. You were made to be you! Imperfect, messy, beautiful you. Your being different than the people around you is God’s creativity on display. 

Each of us reflects the beauty of our Creator in our unique way. Too often, all we see in our reflection are the things we’re not, rather than embracing all that we are. We own the negative things about ourselves far too quickly and we allow those thoughts to control our actions and our beliefs about ourselves. This impacts how we treat ourselves and how we treat our neighbors. Comparison is poison in a community. 

I’ve always loved the story of Elizabeth and Mary. Elizabeth could have easily been jealous or judgmental of Mary. Instead, she celebrates her and affirms her “yes” to the Lord, rallying around her cousin during what was the most difficult season of her life to date. When we embrace who we are it allows us to not only live out of our belovedness, but to celebrate and champion the belovedness of those around us. It allows us to, “love our neighbor as ourselves” (Matthew 22). The word celebrity just means ‘one who is celebrated.' Maybe celebrities shouldn’t just be the rich and famous. We need people in our lives who celebrate us. We need to be people who celebrate others. 

The first step to being able to love others is to love and accept ourselves. The Lord rejoices in us simply because He made us.