You know, when I look back in life and in ministry, I think there are certain things
that trapped me and really hurt me when I was starting out with my walk in Christ.
And I want to talk a little bit about that today.
My name is Leanne Friesman, and this is Restoring Word.
I just saw a beautiful scripture in 2 Corinthians, starting in verse 10, and this comes from
the Amplified Bible.
And it was interesting because I had never seen in scripture before where comparison
is not wise.
Let me read it to you.
We do not have the audacity to put ourselves in the same class or to compare ourselves
with some who commend themselves or people who are talking and comparing and looking
at how wise or smart or beautiful they are.
When they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they
lack wisdom and behave like fools.
Wow, have you ever thought about that?
I mean, I think especially women have a problem with comparison.
We compare everything, hair and nails and cars and how tall, how short, how skinny,
how fat, how style, our home, everything.
But you know, when you get into comparison, it can really kill your joy.
It can kill your boldness.
It can kill your confidence.
And my word for you today is your unique things that you bring to the table are what really
are going to set someone else free.
I love Joyce Meyer's ministry, and what really liberates so many people when they listen
to her preach is a lot of her weaknesses actually have become her strengths.
It's the thing that she overcame that really helps others in the body.
And that's why I think I enjoy listening to her so much.
Really today, and the word specifically that jumped out at me was wise.
Now wise is a specific Greek word, and it's saphos, and to be wise means to be someone
that's learned, someone who's studied, someone who's academic.
It's used in conjunction with the wise men or Christian scholars or Jewish scholars.
To be wise, it's not wise to compare.
Wow.
So the Holy Spirit here is speaking to us and saying, it's not wisdom to get into a
comparison with someone else.
You know, when we first came down here to Oklahoma and we were attending Rhema, Grant
was at Rhema, I was at ORU, especially music majors have a horrible habit of comparing
themselves to all the other vocalists.
Or someone would stand up and preach and share a word, and young preachers would think
that they would have to somehow act like Kenneth Hagin or, you know, the pastor over at Guts
or Willie George up at Church on the Move.
You know, you are unique.
You bring something to the table that no one else can.
And because of that, you're going to reach people that no one else can.
You have a different story.
You have a different gifting.
You have a different testimony.
And that unique story and testimony is going to touch someone that I never could.
I'm a teacher.
I'm an exhorter.
I put things together in order.
That's who I am.
That's what I bring to Restoring Word.
My husband, on the other hand, he is prophetic.
He flows in the gifts.
I found a beautiful word this week.
And it talks about the flow of the gifts, Reo.
It's a flow like water.
It fills everything in the room.
Well, if you've ever watched someone flow in the gifts or flow in the Holy Ghost, when
they're under that anointing, it just bubbles out of them.
It's a gifting.
It's something that I don't carry.
But I'm thankful for that gift because I see how that gift, when it's done properly according
to the Word of God, it empowers.
and it builds and it strengthens the body of Christ. Be yourself, you know, be
free. Don't get into comparison. Do the thing that you are uniquely created to
do for the body of Christ and don't let comparison of what someone else does or
how they look or how they preach or how they speak or how they sing or how they
lead. Steal joy from your life. You are uniquely and wonderfully made. Your story
and your testimony is uniquely yours and it will help others in the days to come.
Thank you for listening. Please like and subscribe and we hope to hear from you
soon. Thanks.