{"id":1313,"date":"2016-09-26T11:10:55","date_gmt":"2016-09-26T11:10:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/craigfinnestad.com\/?p=1313"},"modified":"2016-09-27T11:51:29","modified_gmt":"2016-09-27T11:51:29","slug":"comparison-sermon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/craigfinnestad.com\/?p=1313","title":{"rendered":"Comparison Sermon"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Don&#8217;t compare yourselves to who you perceive other people are today. Compare yourself to who you were yesterday.<\/p>\n<p>Freedom begins when comparison ends. Your authentic persona will begin emerging when you stop comparing yourself to others.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1170\" height=\"658\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/fgJ9CXGMS6I?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>Negative Effects of Comparison<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>1. Comparison Limits Our Growth<\/p>\n<p><em>Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won\u2019t need to compare yourself to anyone else. -Galatians 6:4 (NLT)<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Don\u2019t compare yourself to who you perceive others are today. Compare yourself to who you were yesterday.<\/p>\n<p>2. Comparison Hurts Our Relationships with Others<\/p>\n<p>3. Comparison Teaches Us Scarcity<\/p>\n<p>Don\u2019t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. \u2013Romans 12:2 (NLT)<\/p>\n<p><strong>How to Return to Eden<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>1. Encourage instead of envy. Cheer instead of compare.<\/p>\n<p>2. Look to others as inspiration.<\/p>\n<p>3. See your potential.<\/p>\n<p>4. Don\u2019t expect perfection from yourself.<\/p>\n<p>5. Practice gratitude.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>1<\/em><\/strong><em> Now Adam had sexual relations with his wife, Eve, and she became pregnant. When she gave birth to Cain, she said, \u201cWith the Lord\u2019s help, I have produced a man!\u201d <strong>2\u00a0<\/strong>Later she gave birth to his brother and named him Abel.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>When they grew up, Abel became a shepherd, while Cain cultivated the ground. <strong>3\u00a0<\/strong>When it was time for the harvest, Cain presented some of his crops as a gift to the Lord. <strong>4\u00a0<\/strong>Abel also brought a gift\u2014the best portions of the firstborn lambs from his flock. The Lord accepted Abel and his gift, <strong>5\u00a0<\/strong>but he did not accept Cain and his gift. This made Cain very angry, and he looked dejected.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>6<\/strong>\u00a0\u201cWhy are you so angry?\u201d the Lord asked Cain. \u201cWhy do you look so dejected? <strong>7\u00a0<\/strong>You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>8\u00a0<\/strong>One day Cain suggested to his brother, \u201cLet\u2019s go out into the fields.\u201d And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother, Abel, and killed him.<\/p>\n<p><strong>9\u00a0<\/strong>Afterward the Lord asked Cain, \u201cWhere is your brother? Where is Abel?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d Cain responded. \u201cAm I my brother\u2019s guardian?\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>10\u00a0<\/strong>But the Lord said, \u201cWhat have you done? Listen! Your brother\u2019s blood cries out to me from the ground! <strong>11\u00a0<\/strong>Now you are cursed and banished from the ground, which has swallowed your brother\u2019s blood. <strong>12\u00a0<\/strong>No longer will the ground yield good crops for you, no matter how hard you work! From now on you will be a homeless wanderer on the earth.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>13\u00a0<\/strong>Cain replied to the Lord, \u201cMy punishment is too great for me to bear! <strong>14\u00a0<\/strong>You have banished me from the land and from your presence; you have made me a homeless wanderer. Anyone who finds me will kill me!\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>15\u00a0<\/strong>The Lord replied, \u201cNo, for I will give a sevenfold punishment to anyone who kills you.\u201d Then the Lord put a mark on Cain to warn anyone who might try to kill him. <strong>16\u00a0<\/strong>So Cain left the Lord\u2019s presence and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden. \u2013Genesis 4:1-16<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; Don&#8217;t compare yourselves to who you perceive other people are today. Compare yourself to who you were yesterday. Freedom begins when comparison ends. Your authentic persona will begin emerging when you stop comparing yourself to others. Negative Effects of&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1314,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[101,6],"tags":[114,117],"class_list":["post-1313","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sermons","category-waters-edge","tag-comparison","tag-sermon"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v16.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A sermon on comparison. Don&#039;t compare yourselves to who you perceive other people are today. 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