The Freedom of Looking Up | Paige Allen — Carol McLeod Ministries
Comparison is a regular part of life, and yet its impact always feels personal.
The story of Rachel and Leah is one of comparison, competition, and longing. These two sisters end up marrying the same man and spend most of their days wanting what the other has. Leah in particular, has to battle the lure of comparison as it becomes clear that Jacob had his eyes on beautiful Rachel and viewed her as the unwanted woman forced upon his life.
Have you ever felt unwanted or overlooked because your life was in the shadow of someone who sparkled? It’s hard to believe in God’s whispered promises when shouts of our inferiority are mounting. Sometimes, words of comparison are hurled our way by another, but if I’m honest, I’ll confess that most of the time, I’m the one inflicting the pain of sizing up my life against someone who appears better than me. I do it when scrolling social media. I do it with sideways glances when I notice another woman’s beauty, confidence, and great style. I do it when I compare myself with the idea of what I thought my life would look like by now.
And I know that these thought loops take me nowhere productive. But some days, I still choose to compare. And when I do, I miss out on the beauty of God’s unfolding promises right now in my ordinary yet extraordinary life. Here is what I’ve learned from Leah:
As Leah wrestled with her own loops of comparison with Rachel’s beauty and favor, Scripture says that the Lord saw, and He responded by enabling her to have children.
I find it interesting that God’s response to bring comfort and hope was to open a doorway toward Leah’s purpose in partnership with Him. God was inviting Leah into His promise to create a new nation, and ultimately to create a family line for a future Savior, but as I read her story, I see that for years, she missed out on the joy that was possible in her now. God opened her womb, but she still aimed her eyes on what she lacked.
Leah birthed four sons in Genesis 29, and with each birth, Leah gives us a window into her heart and mind as she carefully chose the names of her sons.
So Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben, for she said, “The Lord has noticed my misery, and now my husband will love me.”
She soon became pregnant again and gave birth to another son. She named him Simeon, for she said, “The Lord heard that I was unloved and has given me another son.”
Then she became pregnant a third time and gave birth to another son. He was named Levi, for she said, “Surely this time my husband will feel affection for me, since I have given him three sons!”
Once again Leah became pregnant and gave birth to another son. She named him Judah, for she said, “Now I will praise the Lord!” And then she stopped having children.
Genesis 29:32–35 (emphases added)
With the birth of her first three sons, Leah is entrenched in her disappointment and pain. She was thankful that the Lord noticed her, but she believed He simply noticed her misery and unloved state, and it was clearly her belief that she would step out of Rachel’s shadow and earn some type of affection or at least appreciation with the birth of these three boys.
But then we read of her fourth child, and the mood drastically shifts. There is no mention of her hard life nor her hope that she will finally earn the love of Jacob, but instead, she resolutely and joyfully declares, “Now I will praise the Lord!” With this birth something deep inside her has changed. Leah names her fourth child Judah, meaning praise, and with a simple bluntness, Scripture records that “she stopped having children.” In other words, she moved her focus to the Lord and allowed her striving to halt.
The overlooked and unloved Leah teaches us truth about overcoming the trap of comparison. Comparison only exists when our eyes are on someone other than God. It’s a simple principle. Whatever captures our attention will receive our affection. In the previous season, Leah’s focus was upon Rachel, Jacob, and, in comparison, her own lack. This led not only to despair, but also to a constant companion that was her lack of love compared with Rachel’s preferred status. Leah could not see what the Lord was doing in her own life because she was caught up in an unrelenting pursuit to prove herself through her production of heirs in hopes that she might obtain what belonged to Rachel. Comparison downplays the promises overflowing in our own lives because all we see is what we lack. It wasn’t until Leah changed her focus from them to Him that she finally found a season of peace.
And we are just as susceptible to similar patterns of unhealthy comparison when our gaze goes anywhere other than God. When we look longingly at the life of a co-worker, sister, or the famous influencer on Instagram, it is only natural that we will begin to wish for their life rather than our own. Why? Because they have our attention. But when our gaze is gripped by the Creator and His loving promises of life, our desires will shift into alignment with His purpose.
How redemptive and powerful it is to see what happens when Leah finally turned her full attention toward God. She not only received a promise from God—her son of praise, but it was this child, the one named Judah, who would one day be known as the father of David. With a shift from admiring Rachel’s love to embracing love from a Father above, Leah stepped into her greatest purpose and into the lineage of our Savior, Jesus.
