I Stopped Comparing... and Had My Most Productive Day in a Month

Comparison was draining my focus and peace; surrender restored them—and productivity became overflow, not effort.

Recently I was caught off guard.

Not with some massive failure or obvious sin, but with something quieter and more dangerous.

I was triggered.

Little things stacked up. Conversations. Social posts. Seeing others make progress I thought I should be making by now. Nothing dramatic, just enough to pull my attention off God and turn it back onto myself.

That’s where comparison lives.

And comparison doesn’t always sound toxic. Sometimes it sounds reasonable.

Am I behind?
Why does this seem easier for them?
What am I missing?

Here’s what I’ve learned the hard way:

Comparison is never neutral.
It’s always competing for lordship.

The Real Battle Isn’t Good vs. Evil

The biggest wrestle isn’t whether I’ll do the wrong thing; it’s whether I’ll do the right thing from the wrong source.

This wasn’t about temptation. It was about self-governance.

My will.
My way.
My timeline.
My need to feel significant, secure, or satisfied, without surrender.

And every time I source those things on my own, I end up in the same place: Never enough.

More effort.
Less peace.
Scattered focus.
Shrinking joy.

The Recentering Moment

So I stopped. Not because I had a great plan - but because I was tired of wrestling. I was praying for a solution and suddenly was reminded of a scripture. Not a “feel-good” chapter. A clarifying one...

I opened Isaiah 53....personalized;

He was despised and rejected by me, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And I hid my face from Him; He was despised and I did not esteem Him. 

Surely He has born my grief and carried my sorrows; yet I esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. 

But he was wounded for my transgressions, He was bruised for my iniquities; the chastisement for my peace was upon Him, and by His stripes I am healed.

We have turned, every one, to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

It pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief.

When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand.

He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied.

Jesus didn’t lose control.
He laid it down.

Not out of weakness, but surrender and trust.

For me. For you.

And something in me realigned.

I didn’t optimize my workflow. I didn’t fix my mindset. I didn’t try harder.

I surrendered.

My will.
My way.
My need to be enough.

Oswald Chambers (My Utmost for His Highest) helps clarify for us what sin or iniquity really is. It's deeper than moral right or wrong. You can be morally right and still lawless - a law unto yourself; being your own god. The disposition of sin is the claim of my life, my way. 

What Happened Next Surprised Me

I had the most productive day I’ve had in a month.

Not hustle productivity. Not adrenaline-fueled output.

Clear.
Focused.
Light.

Work flowed.

Why? Because surrender doesn’t reduce effectiveness - it restores it.

When I stopped sourcing life from comparison and control, everything I did became overflow, not effort.

The Questions That Changed Everything

I realized I’d been asking the wrong questions.

Comparison Questions (Self-Sourced)

These always feel urgent, and always drain life:

• How am I doing compared to them?
• Why is this easier for someone else?
• What do I need to prove right now?
• Am I falling behind?
• What will people think if this fails?
• Why isn’t my effort producing more?
• When will I finally be enough?

Surrender Questions (God-Sourced)

These re-centre authority and restore peace:

• What are You doing right now?
• What have You already entrusted to me?
• Where are You inviting me to yield—not strive?
• What obedience is mine today?
• What does faithfulness look like in this moment?
• What am I being led to release?
• What assignment is mine—not theirs?
• What is already enough because You are here?

The One Question That Snaps Me Back Fast

When comparison creeps in, I now ask:

What does my reaction tell me about who is on ruling my heart (significance, satisfaction, or safety/security)?

 That question doesn’t shame me.

It re-enthrones Him.

If You’re Distracted Right Now

You don’t need more discipline. You don’t need a better system. You don’t need to fix yourself.

You need to return faster.

Back to surrender. Back to trust.
Back to doing the same work - but from a different source.

Because when you surrender your will, what you do next stops being survival and starts being overflow.

Reflection:

Where have you been trying to secure significance, satisfaction, or security without surrender - and what would change if you laid that down today?

Listen to the Podcast Here

Next steps

1. Let us know how this helped you recenter and the subsequent outcomes of your work day. Email [email protected]

2. Consider joining in person or online with a like-minded community of kingdom-centered business leaders. See Heaveninbusiness.com/events