Comparison = The root of Discontentment

I'm sure you all have heard it, and probably figured it out by now, but it's taken a real beating to my thick skull to get it into my brain: Comparison = Unhappiness.  You smarties out there are probably going, 'Uh duh Erin' but it really caught me by surprise.  I've been struggling with my personal appearance lately and I finally decided that I would just realize that I wasn't beautiful and have a poor me pity party for the last couple of weeks. You see I thought that if I realized my limits then it would help me stop worrying about it.  But it backfired.  All the time when I was telling myself to realize my lack of beauty, I was stressing about it and making myself even more depressed.  And all the time it was the comparing.  I would go to the shop and see beautiful people all around me and feel like the ugly duckling, sticking out like a sore thumb.

You remember when I told you how God whispered something to me?  Well this time it wasn't so gentle.  I'm sure he had a biblical sledgehammer smashing it's way into my brain, and I was being very stubborn.  Yesterday he yelled; 'Erin Grace you are wasting your potential by comparing yourself to all the 'beautiful' people out there.  As long as you keep comparing yourself and feeling sorry for yourself you are not useful.'  Talk about a bombshell.  Wasn't expecting that.... at all.

Then he put his arm around me and gave me a kiss on the cheek whispering tenderly; 'You are so beautiful.  In fact my silly little daughter, because I can see the wonderful woman I created you to be I died for you.  You are literally 'to die for'."  Wow! Thank you Lord. 

I'm sure you've all experienced the painful process of trying to break a bad habit.  I'm in that process now.  In fact I wrote on my hand last night: Comparison limits the usefulness of God.   Now I completely understand that God loves me unconditionally, and he doesn't compare me to anyone. God does work through people who are struggling with this issue, and it only by his amazing grace that he does, but think how much easier it must be if we are useful, willing vessels.  I want to be like that.  So remember;

COMPARISON= DISCONTENTMENT

God bless you all and remember; God thinks you're to die for. 

Erin Grace

P.S  The picture above is another one of my drawings. Drawn from 'Our Beautiful Children' taken by Silva Wischeropp