I Want What They’ve Got

The challenge of comparing ourselves to others is that you are never able to get the full story.

Psalm 44:1-26

Reference: v.23 Awake, Lord! Why do you sleep? Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever. (TNIV Bible)

Explore: Have you ever heard someone else’s faith story and thought, “Why doesn’t God talk to me like that?”  It’s always great to hear testimonies and see how God moves in so many different ways, but there is often that thoughts in the back of your head that makes us wonder why our lives don’t seem nearly as glamorous.  The challenge of comparing ourselves to others is that you are never able to get the full story.  When someone says that they prayed all night it only takes a couple of sentences to explain what that was like.  But you’ll never fully understand what it was like for them to be on their knees for seven hours straight.  While its great to be inspired by other people’s stories we can’t envy them for it as God knows we are different to them and will connect with us in a different way.

Application: When God’s chosen people the Israelites were fighting battles they looked back at the miraculous way God intervened in their ancestor’s battles.  And yet their battles seemed so different.  God is such a diverse God that He doesn’t need to repeat history.  He doesn’t rely on the success of an original to make the sequel exactly the same.  It’s good for us to hear other people’s stories to see the power that God does have through other’s lives but we also need to hand over our lives to God to show us His power in its many varied forms.

Prayer: Lord, You are all powerful and majestic.  May we not desire for You to repeat Yourself in our lives but may we see something new and beautiful that You bring to us.  Amen.

What do you admire in other people’s faith?  Where are you needing God’s hand in your own life?