Episode 418: I’m Talkin…Compare

I’m Talkin', episode 418 for April 19, 2026.

This is Joel from the I’m Talkin' microcast, where I share my thoughts on a topic that has piqued my interest this past week.

This week we’re talking compare.

Compare is another common word.

It’s one we use on a regular basis.

And in general, it doesn’t have a negative connotation or a positive connotation.

But I was thinking about how it is used often in the world, and it does have some negative impact at times.

Depending on what we’re comparing, it can cause lots of trouble.

It can cause envy because we compare ourselves to somebody else and what they have.

It can cause strife because we are angry about something that didn’t happen to us but happened to somebody else on a positive side or maybe even on a negative side.

And oftentimes, we will use it for self-promotion.

We’re comparing ourselves to somebody else so that we can kind of puff ourselves up.

And therein lies the challenge for those of us who call ourselves Christians.

Today’s word comes from Galatians 6, verse 4 that says, Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done and will have no need to compare yourself to anyone else.

So the use of the word says you will have no need to compare yourself to anyone else.

So it’s putting it on the back shelf.

So what do you do if you’re not doing a comparison?

Well, what you’re doing is you’re focused on yourself.

You’re focused on what God has laid out for you to do.

It says pay careful attention to your own work.

So whatever it is that God has you doing.

It doesn’t mean pastoral work or work at the church, but it can mean that.

It can mean work in the regular secular world.

Whatever your job is, it says pay careful attention to that work.

And if you pay careful attention to that work, the promise says you will get the satisfaction of a job well done.

And then you won’t have to compare yourself to anyone else.

You will be self-satisfied or satisfied in the work that God has provided you, in the abilities that God has provided you.

You will know that you have paid so much attention to your work that you’ve done it to the best of your ability.

And you are satisfied that you have fulfilled the requirement of that job.

And you won’t need to compare yourself to someone else.

You won’t need anyone to compare you to anyone else because you have followed God’s instructions for the work that he has gifted you to do and do it so well that you are satisfied in God’s peace and God’s purpose for your life that there is no comparison necessary.

Until next week, this is Joel from the I’m Talking Microcast.