"Compare"

Sometimes compared to others,

I wonder what I’ve done,

With all the Lord assigned me,

A more successful run.

I hear about the stories,

Of those who don’t look back,

Decide to follow Jesus,

And never get off track.

And, yes, I know the Spirit,

His power and His grace,

I know that He’s the victory,

For running this old race.

But I have had some stops and starts,

And failures and some falls,

I’m not making my excuses,

Just being honest, y’all.

It’s easy to discredit,

If you’re trying to find fault,

Feet of clay up to my ears,

And still by Jesus bought.

I wish I’d been more faithful,

Had more consistency,

And I could clearly point to,

A success that you can see.

But here’s my honest feeling,

If I did any good,

It was for the people,

Who follow as they should.

And I have always felt that,

I was s’posed to give,

Hope for all who struggle,

And are praying how to live.

Past all the pain and trouble,

Addiction and heartbreak,

Overcome the shame and guilt,

And grace from Jesus take.

And it helps me to remember,

God does not compare,

Me with His better children,

Or give them special care.

He is no respecter,

Of gender, culture, class,

Or anything religious,

But to the heart sees past.

And I know He loves me,

He let me play a role,

In something He is doing,

And here’s my only goal,

To serve Him and to love Him,

To cowboy up each day,

To share the love of Jesus,

In a clear, convincing way.

“I see very clearly that God shows no favoritism…” (Acts 10:34, NLT)

God never plays favorites. He loves unconditionally and chooses to use people we might not pick. One of the big challenges for the first Christians, who were all Jews, was to accept the fact that Jesus died for all, even the Gentiles whom they considered to be unclean and beyond the scope of God’s reach. One of the first incidents God used to prove otherwise was when He sent Simon Peter to the home of a Roman centurion named Cornelius. The grace was so dramatic no one could deny it, first in a vision from heaven and then when Peter told them about Jesus. It was then that Peter said these important words: God has no favorites! And for this reason we should never compare ourselves to others. God doesn’t, and we shouldn’t, either. If we fall into that trap, we will invariably compare our weaknesses to others strengths, or use their mistakes to justify our own. In either case, don’t. God uniquely loves us all. We are all His favorites.

Lord, help us never compare ourselves to others, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Jamie Means, jamiemeans.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Jamie, and God bless your day.