Early in my faith walk the VOICE VILLAIN in my ear convinced me that I could never be like the “GOOD CHRISTIANS” perched on a pedestal in my mind.

I was comparing myself to a fake standard!
  
The ONLY outcome from that comparison is to come up SHORT and think…Why would God have a plan to use me with all my weakness and pain? Why would God want to use my failures, imperfections, and inadequacies?
  
The idealized, “perfect” Christian is an illusion!
  
God’s plan for each one of us is precisely to use our failures and weaknesses to show how much we need him for everything and to help others in a similar predicament.
  
What’s the difference between a Christian who models Christ and one who does not? KNOWING that you are truly forgiven and then surrendering to God.
  
THE ROADBLOCK
  
One of the roadblocks separating us from God’s forgiveness comes from comparing ourselves to people modeling Christ and living a life of faith that looks far and away above what we are able to pull off. But that is an illusion because we all have flaws and we all struggle with apprehension.
  
We are not to look at other Christians who are better models of Christ. We are to look to God. We need to take him up on that promise and accept that because of his grace we are already made whole in his eyes.
  
Getting stopped behind this barrier is a shame because repentance and forgiveness are the foundations of the Christian faith. If we don’t enter that unlocked door to receive the freedom waiting on the other side, we are frozen in place and held back from getting around that wall of guilt to experience God’s joy.
  
We feel so bad that we try to lock away our sins and bad thoughts in a dark, dirty, unspeakable chamber. We look at conviction of sin as a prison sentence with the door locked and the key thrown away to convict us forever with no chance of parole.
  
THE ANTIDOTE
  
I ask God to keep from comparing myself with others—who they are, what they have, and how they act. Instead, I look to him for my identity and direction.
  
HOW ABOUT YOU?
  
If you are comparing yourself to other Christians in your mind who you think have some kind of idealized persona, it’s a LIE.
  
“Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other.” Isaiah 45:22