The Comparison Game

Abigail and Susannah are growing up together. Abi is my daughter, Susannah is my granddaughter. Abigail is the aunt, Susannah the niece, at eighteen months apart, they are now four and a half and almost three. They live less than ten minutes away from each other, but always want to be at each other's house. Thankfully, Susannah's mommy and daddy are about to move their precious family three doors away from us.
They are very close, but very different. Abigail wants to know if she'll always be the oldest, the biggest, the fastest, etc. She is very competitive and wants to be the best of everything. A little competition is okay but it's the comparison game that I dislike so much.
And it starts too early. As we were walking through the Kroger parking lot, I saw with my own eyes how naturally the comparison game comes to young girls.
I had taken great pains to make the grocery shopping fun for Abigail. We parked far away from the store so that we could get beside a stall that had a bright pink "car buggy" (I think, that's a shopping cart for you Northerners:) Abigail and I had on our sunglasses and were laughing and talking as we took the long walk across the parking lot. I saw another mom, younger than me, of course, with her own cute little girl who was close to Abi's age and riding in another bright pink buggy. Now this little girl was taking in all the details. Several glances were passed back and forth. She looked at me, then at her mom. She looked at Abigail, then down at herself.
At first, I was amused, then I was a little offended. But then, I felt great sadness.  I have no idea what she was thinking. But in my mind, I felt like she was comparing her mom to me and herself to Abigail to see who measured up. Abigail actually pointed, "Hey, she has a pink buggy too." I noticed the little girl didn't have on sunglasses and wondered if that's what she was thinking about. Whatever it was, she didn't seem thrilled about it.

I stopped to take this picture. People passing by smiled, but they had no idea why I was snapping a selfie in the parking lot. I wanted to remember this moment. I want to teach my girls not to measure themselves by what they see in others.
Christ is our model. To be Christlike is the goal, not who is the cutest walking through the Kroger parking lot.

This is an easy trap to fall into. I do it all the time. I'm -

• not as smart as...
• not as cool as...
• not as neat as... 
• not as skinny as...
• not as thoughtful as...
• not as good a cook as...
• not as relaxed as...
• not as godly as... (how about that one?)

When we are constantly sizing ourselves up by the world's standards, or even the cutie walking in the parking lot, we are going to be disappointed. Christ must be our focus all of the time.

Philippians 317

"Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us."