“But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor. For each will have to bear his own load.”
— Paul, Galatians 6:4-5
"The measure of success in the kingdom of God is not numbers or applause, but obedience and faithfulness.”
— Charles Spurgeon
THE TRAP OF COMPARISON
With the new year here many of us are pushing towards new goals, praying big prayers, and seeking the Lord in fresh new ways.
What I have found in my own life is that sometimes as seasons change a certain measure of discontentment can take root in my heart as I find myself coveting a season that seems to be in my future and not walking fully upright in my present season.
This past week I was wrestling with some particular convictions around fatherhood. Specifically around how I was choosing to show up for my kids. I found myself comparing my life and my story with other men around me and it left me feeling inadequate as I found myself mentally striving to take on more of the load that these men seemed to effortlessly carry.
In that moment, the Lord was kind and he reminded me of a verse I had memorized years back.
But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor. For each will have to bear his own load. - Galatians 6:4-5
We’ve all heard that old adage, comparison is the thief of joy.
But it doesn’t just stead joy, it also steals purpose.
We spend so much time evaluating where we stand in relation to others that we rarely stop to ask whether we are standing where God has called us to be in the first place.
It starts early. We scan the room, measuring ourselves against others.
Who is stronger? Who is smarter? Who is more successful?
It doesn’t take long before comparison weaves itself into our identity, dictating what we pursue and the lens in which we see ourselves.
Our world rewards public achievement over quiet faithfulness. It’s easy to feel like what we are doing doesn’t matter unless it is seen, applauded, or validated by others. But scripture never calls us to chase visibility, it calls us to chase obedience. The world may measure worth by influence, but God measures it by faithfulness.
In a culture obsessed with metrics, it’s seems almost impossible not to live out of comparison. We derive our value and even our insecurities from the success or failures of others. If they are thriving, we feel behind. If they fail, we feel relieved. It’s an exhausting and endless cycle.
But Paul’s words in Galatians 6 offer a countercultural truth: Your assignment is yours alone. Your work is not measured against someone else’s calling.
THE MEANING BEHIND THE LOAD
For a long time, I didn’t fully grasp this verse. It almost felt contradictory. Aren’t we supposed to bear one another’s burdens as mentioned just 2 verses ahead? Yes, we are. But each of us has been given our own load to carry as outlined by the Greek word phortion which often refers to a “load”. It was used in military contexts to describe a soldier’s backpack, a personal assignment only he could carry. This wasn’t a crushing burden, but a weight designed specifically for him. A measured and appropriate load, not an oppressive weight.
There are responsibilities, roles, and callings that God has entrusted uniquely to each of us. No one else can be the husband to your wife. No one else can be the father to your children. No one else can fulfill the work God has placed in your hands.
THE LIFE ONLY YOU CAN LIVE
God created good works for you to carry out in this life, in this moment of history. You are not here by accident. You were formed with intention, placed where you are for a reason. The question is, are you faithfully carrying the load He has given you?
There is freedom in realizing that you do not have to run someone else’s race. You do not have to fulfill someone else’s calling. The only expectation God places on you is to be faithful with what He has put in your hands.
Too often, we spend our lives looking at someone else’s pack instead of carrying our own. We covet another’s calling. We compare gifts. We resent our own assignment when it seems less glamorous. But obedience isn’t about visibility, it’s about faithfulness.
Your family is your first ministry. No one else can be the spouse or parent God has called you to be. Your presence in their lives is irreplaceable.
Your work has meaning. Whether your role feels significant or mundane, God has entrusted it to you. Serve with integrity and excellence.
Your obedience matters. What God calls you to may not always be understood by others, but you answer to Him alone. Stay faithful.
Faithfulness is not about grand gestures, it’s about daily obedience. It’s found in the father who prays for his children in secret, in the mother who disciples her kids with quiet consistency, in the worker who chooses integrity over compromise. These acts may never be applauded by the world, but they are seen by God.
EVALUATING YOUR FAITHFULNESS
So friends, are you living a life of obedience to God’s calling? Are you carrying your own load, or are you distracted by someone else’s? Here are a few questions for reflection:
Am I pursuing faithfulness or recognition?
Do I measure my worth by obedience or by comparison?
Have I neglected a primary calling in pursuit of external validation?
Am I shouldering responsibilities God never asked me to carry?
Am I being faithful with what’s in my hands today, or am I constantly longing for something else?
God does not hold you accountable for someone else’s race. Only your own. Stay the course. Carry your load with diligence, with joy, and with integrity.
A FINAL CHARGE
There is a peace that comes when we release the weight of comparison and embrace the life God has called us to. The burden of obedience is not always light, but it is good. It is the weight of purpose, the calling of a servant, the privilege of walking in step with our Creator.
Faithfulness does not mean immediate results. It does not mean instant gratification. It means trusting that what you are doing today, though often unseen, is building something eternal.
God has placed a specific assignment in your hands. Do not abandon it because someone else’s seems more appealing. Do not drop it because the road is difficult.
No one else can carry what has been given to you.
So shoulder it with joy.
Walk in faithfulness.
And trust that the God who called you is the same God who will sustain you.
Your obedience today is shaping the story of eternity.
Stay faithful.
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