Where’s Your Track?

One of the first things we need to understand in order to avoid the curse of comparison on our journey through a wilderness is that everyone has a different race marked out for them. If you look at other peoples’ lives through the lens of comparison, you will inevitably find yourself resenting the fact that ‘that person’ seems to have it so easy, why everything seems to fall into place for them: they get the jobs they want, they don’t seem to have any problems, their kids are never rebellious or in trouble, they don’t seem to have any health issues, they always look fantastic, and to crown it all, they’re such a nice person that you can’t help but like them.

It can be hard not to think to yourself, ‘I’d probably be that nice too, if I had their life!”

So why is it that some people seem to jog through life with ease and grace, and yet others struggle and encounter constant battles along the way? Well, if I knew the answer to that question, I’d be God, and I’m not. So I don’t know. It’s a mystery, and dealing with mystery is a big part of walking with God.

1 Timothy 3:9 talks about ‘holding the mystery of the faith with a pure conscience’. One thing I’ve found that is not helpful is asking “why”? Asking God ‘why’ is usually not fruitful or helpful. It can ‘muddy’ your conscience, leading to bitterness or confusion because, invariably, we don’t hear the answer we want – if we get any answer at all.

We’re not called to understand Him; we’re called to trust Him. Our finite minds can’t even begin to grasp the enormity and complexity of the awesome God who created whole universes, let alone understand how He can be passionately in love with fallible people like us.   

Somewhere along the line, we have to get to the point where we make the decision just to trust God, and not to compare our ‘track’ with anyone else’s. Have you heard the proverb “Don’t judge a person until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes?” There is a lot of truth in that statement. It’s easy to judge others based on what we see and the limited knowledge that we have about that person or their life. But we can’t see what’s going on in their heart, and we don’t usually know the things they have had to walk through to get where they are.

That’s why the Bible is pretty strong on us not judging one another. There is only one judge, because there is only One righteous One who knows everything.

I’m sure, like me, you’ve heard stories about people who appeared to have an enchanted life, were rich or famous, or seemed to ‘have it all together’, but who suddenly commit suicide. It seems so shocking because their lives look so wonderful from the outside, but it only serves to reinforce the fact that so many people live lives that are a total façade; a façade that serves to mask the pain and difficulties they have striven to hide.

Their ‘track’ was not what it appeared to be.

The truth of the matter is that there will always be someone better off than you, and there will also always be someone worse off than you. God in His wisdom has marked out the race for us, and it’s simply not our prerogative to question why He has given us that track. Our responsibility is to say, “Lord, please help me to run with perseverance the race You’ve marked out for me”.

Hebrews 12:2 encourages us to ‘fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith”. If we fix our eyes on Him, we won’t be looking at everyone else, which makes it an awful lot easier not to compare ourselves with them.

Notice it says FIX your eyes – that doesn’t imply a quick glance. It implies locking eyes with Him, letting Him hold your gaze, being captivated by Him.

When your gaze gets drawn away and you start looking at someone else’s track or comparing your track to theirs, it causes you to start to veer towards their track. It’s similar to how drivers have a tendency to veer towards another vehicle if they look at that oncoming car, rather than looking at the road ahead.

The wonderful thing is that, if that happens to us and we find ourselves veering off course because we’ve been focussing too much on someone else’s life or track, there is grace given to us to help us fix our eyes back on Jesus, to focus our attention on Him, to marvel at how beautiful He is and how wonderfully kind He is.

So here’s my challenge: just stop it!

Let’s just stop comparing our lives with everyone else’s. Let’s decide today not to focus on other people’s lives and tracks, but to be thankful and to learn how to trust our faithful Father. Let’s run our own race, on our own track, fixing our eyes on the prize that awaits us!

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Until next time ….

Ask yourself if you have been fixing your eyes on other people or other objectives, rather than on Jesus.

Do you often feel like everyone else’s track (or life) looks better than yours?

If you do, make a decision right now to stop comparing your track with theirs.

Start to thank God for the track He has given you to run, and ask Him for the grace to run with diligence and joy.

Read Hebrews 12:2 and ask Holy Spirit to help you fix your eyes on Jesus. Every time you find yourself looking at other people or other objectives, tell Jesus that you love Him and fix your eyes back on Him.

I would love to hear from you! Please feel free to share your thoughts or ask questions, either by using the contact form, or by adding your comments below.