Central Lutheran Church - Elk River
Central Lutheran Church - Elk River
Keep Your Eyes On Your Own Paper {Reflections}
Have you ever caught yourself looking at someone else's life, work, or talents and thinking, "What about them?" You're not alone. In this deeply reflective episode, we explore a fascinating moment between Jesus and Peter from John 21 that perfectly captures our human tendency toward comparison.
After his resurrection, Jesus is having a profound conversation with Peter about his future when Peter suddenly points to John and asks, "What about him?" Jesus's response cuts straight to the heart of our comparison culture: "What has that got to do with you?" It's the spiritual equivalent of "keep your eyes on your own paper" – a reminder that comparing ourselves to others distracts us from our unique purpose.
Drawing on the wisdom of Rabbi Zuzia, who famously said that in heaven we won't be asked "Why weren't you Moses?" but rather "Why weren't you Zuzia?", we confront the beautiful challenge of becoming fully ourselves. Your particular combination of experiences, challenges, gifts, and perspectives has never existed before in human history – which means true comparison is not only unhelpful, it's impossible.
When we fixate on others' journeys, we rob the world of our singular contribution. The ultimate question isn't whether you measured up to someone else's standard, but whether you fully embraced the unique you that you were created to be. What is your voice, your perspective, your gift that the world desperately needs? How can you be more fully you today?
Share this episode with someone who needs freedom from the comparison trap, and join us in person or online at Central in Elk River as we continue exploring what it means to live authentically in community.
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What is up everybody? Hey, this is Ryan. Welcome to our Reflections Podcast. And again, I don't know what the title of this one is going to be when it comes out, but we're going to call this one. What About Him? There's this passage in the end of this one is going to be when it comes out, but we're going to call this one what About Him? There's this passage in the end of John. So John tells this story about at the end of.
Speaker 1:So Jesus has been resurrected, he reappears to the disciples and he's sort of hashing things out in this moment in John 21 with Peter, and Peter, of course, was the one who denies Jesus three times before Jesus is crucified, or rather while he's being, you know, put on trial. And so there's this moment where, like him and Jesus sort of reconcile, because the last those two had been in, you know, in contact. Jesus predicted that Peter would betray him, and Peter's like no way, I would never do that. And of course he does it, and Peter probably doesn't know himself as well as he maybe ought to have. And so Jesus was right. So then Jesus goes to the cross and then, of course, he's killed. Everyone scatters and runs, and then Jesus shows back up three days later and he meets and confronts Peter and in all these moments you're like what's going to happen? Well, it turns out that Jesus begins to restore Peter and they start to talk things through and at the end of the scene, one of the things I love most is that Jesus is telling Peter some things that are going to kind of come to pass, and even about how Peter might die, and then Peter turns to John and says to Jesus hey, what about him? Which is hilarious because they're not even talking about John.
Speaker 1:Jesus is telling Peter about Peter and Peter's first reaction is to look at John and say, hey, what about that guy? Peter and Peter's first reaction is to look at John and say, hey, what about that guy? I don't know if you've ever been there, where you're like in the moment, and then you notice somebody or something around you. What about them? What about that thing? Or maybe you're working on something like a project or a task, and maybe it's creative work, who knows? And all you can think about is how would so-and-so do it? Or I wish I could be more like them when they do it. What about them? How would they do this? And many times what it does is. It kind of freezes you in the moment, because when we compare and this seems like what Peter's kind of doing what about him? And Jesus' answer is brilliant. He says back to Peter what has that got to do with you? In other words, don't worry about him. Keep your eyes on your own paper. You do what I'm telling you to do. You do what's yours to do. Don't worry about John. John's story, john's journey, john's path is radically different than you because he's not you, you're you. And there's this idea that when we compare ourselves to other people, what really happens is we're robbing ourselves of our own unique path and our own unique contribution to the world.
Speaker 1:There's this wonderful saying that the rabbis had Rabbi Zuzia. He once said this before he died. He said hey, listen, in the coming age they will not ask me. This is Rabbi Zuzia. In the coming age, they won't ask me hey, why weren't you Moses? In the coming age meaning like the age to come, or you might say, in heaven, they're not going to ask me hey, why weren't you Moses? Who's this very famous Hebrew character in the Hebrew Bible, rabbi Azusia says instead, they will ask me why were you not Azusia? Like for me. When I go to heaven, when I stand before God, god won't ask me hey, why weren't you Rabbi Zuzia, why weren't you Elijah, why weren't you X or Y or whomever I compare myself to? God will ask me hey, why weren't you Ryan? In other words, there's something about me that's unique to me, and my path, my journey, my skill set In fact, I would say the me that is me or the you that is you has never been done before, it's never even been attempted before.
Speaker 1:I mean, there are a lot of people that are doing things that you're doing or that I'm doing, and maybe some of them are kind of similar in a variety of ways and it's difficult not to compare. But the thing is, nobody has ever done the thing that I'm trying to do, with my own particular peculiar mix of variabilities and stories and memories, and the things that I'm doing with my challenges and my family. Nobody's ever done this before, and the same with you. No one's ever attempted you before, no one's ever been you before. The exact sort of interrelated web of people and events and places and memories and desire and love that's your life has never existed in the history of the universe, and so it's really actually impossible to compare yourself.
Speaker 1:I think Jesus might say hey, what does that got to do with you?
Speaker 1:You do you. I've put you here to be you. You have a unique contribution, a unique thing to give a unique voice, a unique paradigm, a unique view of the world, and I want you to be you. So, when you go to heaven, god won't ask you hey, why weren't you?
Speaker 1:You know, fill in the blank with all the people that you love and admire and want to be like. He won't say, hey, why weren't you more like them? He'll say why weren't you fully you, the you that is you that I made you to be, because when we compare ourselves to other people and the things that they're doing, one, it's actually impossible, because what do they have to do with me? Anyway, they're radically different, on a different path, a different journey. But when we compare ourselves, we're actually robbing ourselves of our own unique contribution to the world. So what is yours, what is your contribution to give to the world today? What is your view, what is your paradigm, what is your voice that the world needs to hear? How can you be more fully you today and offer that as a gift to the world Because we need it. All right, love you guys. Peace.
Speaker 2:Hey, if you enjoy this show, I'd love to have you share it with some friends. And don't forget, you are always welcome to join us in person at Central in Elk River at 830, which is our liturgical gathering, or at 10 o'clock, our modern gathering, or you can check us out online at clcelkriverorg Peace.
