Feel like everyone else is “winning at life” while you’re falling behind? In this episode, learn how to step off the comparison treadmill and live the unique assignment God has given you.

Have you ever walked into church, scrolled your feed, or sat in a room full of people and felt like everyone else was doing life better than you?

Their kids seem more put together.

Their homes look more beautiful.

Their marriages look more connected.

Their lives look more successful.

And even if you love Jesus and you’re serving Him, inside you find yourself thinking, “I’m not enough. My family isn’t enough. I’m always behind.”

In this episode, Bart shares the story of a pastor’s wife and mom who quietly lived in that exact spiral. Sunday after Sunday, she’d look around and feel like everyone else was winning at life. Later, the scroll would make it worse, every smiling photo, every “perfect” moment, every update made her own life feel a little smaller. She wasn’t bitter, but she was stuck in comparison, constantly measuring herself against other women, other families, other ministries.

Through her story and the truth of Galatians 6:4, you’ll see that God never asked you to live someone else’s life. He hasn’t called you to chase someone else’s calling, copy someone else’s family, or match someone else’s results. Instead, He invites you to “pay careful attention to your own work,” to find joy and satisfaction in being faithful to the specific assignment He’s given you.

Galatians 6:4 (NLT) says:

“Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won’t need to compare yourself to anyone else.”

Bart unpacks how Sandra Stanley eventually recognized how much peace she was losing every time she measured her life against someone else’s highlight reel. That realization led her to create a Bible study called The Comparison Trap, centered on the freedom that comes when you stop looking sideways and start looking at the unique work God has placed in your hands. She learned to celebrate other women’s wins without turning them into a verdict on her own worth, and to find satisfaction not in outperforming others, but in doing what God actually asked her to do.

You’ll be invited to make that same shift—from “How do I stack up?” to “What has God asked me to do today?” That’s where comparison starts to lose its grip, and peace slowly begins to return.

Main Scripture:

Galatians 6:4 (NLT) –

“Pay careful attention to your own work, for then you will get the satisfaction of a job well done, and you won’t need to compare yourself to anyone else.”

By the end of this episode, you’ll be reminded:

• That comparison quietly steals your joy, your peace, and your gratitude.
• That your value isn’t measured by how you stack up, but by Whose you are.
• That God’s assignment for you is specific, personal, and good—even if it looks smaller or quieter than someone else’s.
• That real satisfaction comes from being faithful, not from being first.

Today’s Challenge:

Notice one moment today when comparison tries to creep in, maybe when you walk into a room, see someone else’s success, or open social media.

When you feel that familiar sting of “I’m behind” or “I’m not enough,” pause and pray:

“Lord, help me pay careful attention to my own work. What have You asked me to do today?”

Then, name one concrete assignment from God in this season, a person to love, a responsibility to carry, a step of obedience to take, and let that be your focus instead of how you measure up to anyone else.

Encouraged by today’s devotion?

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Surrounded by people but still feel unseen? In this episode, discover how God’s promise to never leave or abandon you speaks into the quiet ache of loneliness in a crowded life.

Have you ever had a day where you were around people nonstop, at work, at home, at church, but still crawled into bed feeling completely alone?

The meetings, conversations, family noise, and social media interactions were all there… yet deep down, you felt unseen, unknown, and maybe even forgotten. That’s what it means to be lonely in a crowded life. From the outside, everything looks full. On the inside, there’s an ache that doesn’t quite go away.

In this episode, Bart tells the story of a seventeen-year-old girl, Joni Eareckson, lying in a crowded rehab center after a diving accident left her a quadriplegic. Nurses and staff were everywhere. Machines were beeping. Other patients were nearby. But as friends stopped visiting and nights grew long, she wondered if even God had walked out on her. In a place that was never quiet, her loneliness was loud.

Through Joni’s story and the promises of Deuteronomy 31:6 and Hebrews 13:5, you’ll see that God’s answer to loneliness isn’t always more people or more noise, it’s His presence. He promises to personally go ahead of you, to be with you, and to never fail or abandon you, even when it feels like everyone else has slowly drifted away.

You’ll hear how, in that same rehab center, God began to meet Joni in the quiet hours when no one else was there. As friends read Scripture over her, verses like “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you,” started to move from words on a page to an anchor in her soul. Over time, the girl who felt completely unseen in a crowded ward became a woman who has spent her life telling others, “You are not forgotten. God has not left you.”

That same truth is for you too. Whether your loneliness shows up at your desk, your dinner table, your church lobby, or your bedroom at night, God’s promise hasn’t changed: He goes with you, He goes before you, and He will not walk away.

Main Scriptures:

Deuteronomy 31:6 (NLT) – “So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the LORD your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.”

Hebrews 13:5 (NLT) – “God has said, ‘I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.’”

By the end of this episode, you’ll be reminded:

• That feeling unseen by people doesn’t mean you are unseen by God.
• That God’s presence is not distant or general—He personally goes ahead of you.
• That His promise to never fail or abandon you is stronger than the sting of human disappointment.
• That even in a life that looks crowded from the outside, you can learn to rest in the deeper reality: you are never truly alone in Christ.

Today’s Challenge:

Think of one place where you most often feel alone: your office, your commute, your kitchen at night, your bedroom before you fall asleep.

The next time you’re in that place, quietly pray: “Lord, You said You would never fail me and never abandon me. Help me sense Your presence here. Help me remember I am not alone.”

If you can, write down Deuteronomy 31:6 or Hebrews 13:5 and keep it where you’ll see it during that lonely moment. Let God’s promise be the reminder your heart reaches for first.

Encouraged by today’s devotion?

Share this episode with someone who feels unseen or forgotten right now. A simple link from you might be the reminder they need that God has not left them.

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Feeling overwhelmed by nonstop decisions at work and home? In this episode, discover how God promises wisdom when decision fatigue sets in, and how asking Him can bring clarity and peace, even in everyday choices.

Have you ever reached the end of the day and felt completely stuck over something small, like what to cook for dinner or whether to answer one more message?

That’s decision fatigue, and it’s more common than we realize.

In this episode, Bart talks about a mom named Kellie who found herself frozen in front of her refrigerator, not because she didn’t have options, but because she’d already made too many decisions that day. Her mind was worn out, and even simple choices felt overwhelming.

Through her story and the promise of James 1:5, you’ll be reminded that God never intended for you to carry the weight of every decision alone. Scripture tells us that when we lack wisdom, we can ask our generous God, and He will give it without rebuke.

This episode will help you see that:

• Decision fatigue is real, and it affects your peace and clarity
• God invites you to ask for wisdom in small, everyday choices
• You don’t need the perfect decision, just the next faithful step
• God’s wisdom brings calm, not pressure

Main Scripture:

James 1:5 (NLT)

“If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking.”

Today’s Challenge:

The next time you feel overwhelmed by a decision, pause and pray James 1:5 out loud. Ask God for wisdom, then take the next simple step in faith. You don’t have to solve everything, just ask.

Encouraged by today’s devotion?

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https://www.dailydevotionsforbusylives.com/131

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