… there is no new thing under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 1:9 KJV)
Or is there?
When I was a child, I remember a Sunday teaching comparing apples and oranges. The idea was that not everyone likes oranges, and thus it was impossible to be liked by everyone. And apples were liked by some who did not like oranges.
Check! Understood by my school-age self.
Mulling over that sermon, I asked myself, “Why do I want so badly to be liked by everyone?”
Fast forward a few decades, and the growing need to be liked has become a cultural obsession. It is more akin to the overgrown ivy I have had to battle at our newish abode. Thick vines grip and wrap the tree trunks. On the cooler weekends, I am up early, pulling, prying, and cutting away its invasive growth.
(Can you find our cat in the above photo?)
Nobody shows their mess, so why am I?
Because we must drag, push, and expose to the light what is choking the life out of us.
Wanting to be liked, noticed, and accepted is nothing new. It has affected generation after generation.
What is the solution? Change your view!
How are you unique? I know, in some Christian circles, this idea can be frowned up and quickly hushed. We just won’t invite those to this conversation.
The Uniqueness of you!
Your fingerprints
Your DNA
Your dreams (Psalm 37:4)
Your purpose (Jeremiah 29:11)
Your spiritual gift (1 Corinthians 12:7)
The way you love others (1 John 4:12)
The way you serve people (1 Corinthians 12:7)
Are you feeling untangled from the overgrown vines of comparison?
Is there something new under the sun? Yes! You, me, your neighbours, your family, your friends.
You were created with a purpose and on purpose. But why?
To reveal the goodness of God to this generation. (The above verses will reveal this more clearly.)
You are not comparable, and neither is anyone that you know. So please, put down the cross of comparison.
Like the orange and apple that I began this blog post with, we can not be everything to everyone. No one is designed by God to fill that role.
God created you, dear reader, to uniquely reflect his great love for those around you.
Thanks for the reminder, which I need too often. I look forward to reading the verses.
Love having you stop by, Dianne. I am blessed that this post was something you needed. ❤️
Love this sister Michele! Brings believers such peace to realize they are not in any type of competition with others anymore. Just us alone, each one, sharing together and working together peacefully while seeking to find the will of God for our own life! Nice! Thank You Jesus!
Anthony, thanks so much for stopping by. And thank you for adding to the conversation for God’s glory! ❤️
Comparison is the thief of joy. – Theodore Roosevelt
Spot on, Sally! Thank you for that great reminder! 🙏
Such great analogies, Michele! Indeed, comparison is choking the life out of us individually and our society as a whole. Thank you for bringing it to the light as a much-needed reminder. May we, as you suggest, focus on our uniqueness in Christ and be willing to share those traits with those around us for His glory. P,S, Such a gorgeous pic of the sun beams!
Hey Dalene, thanks so much for stopping by. ❤️I am delighted this post moved you. That sun set was taken last Friday, my hubby and I on our way home from our weekly coffee date.
Your writing is so beautiful and inspirational, I can feel God through your words and the vision created from them 🙏💗
Awe, thank you Karen. I am grateful you stopped by and blessed by your words. ❤️
“The need to be liked has become a cultural obsession.”
So true! Also, the desire to be UNIQUE can make us independent and self-focused. “I’m doing it MY WAY.” I like your ending: we’re created to reflect God’s love the best way we alone can.
Hi Christine. The slippery slope of uniqueness! What a great point! Thanks so much for stopping by!