Quiet the Noise.

Comparison is loud, He is quiet.

I am in a season that is super full of celebration. This month alone, I have a baby shower every Saturday, plus one I couldn’t even make it to (sorry, twinny). It’s full and so special because I get to celebrate and love on my close gals who are bringing new life into this world.

At one point, I had to stop myself, because I was realizing in slow motion that ALL of my girlfriends were getting pregnant. Ten of them, to be exact.

I was convinced there was something in the water.

And while it’s a gift and a joy to watch these women grow, don’t think for a second I haven’t thought “wait, I want this,” or “I wish I could be pregnant alongside them,” or “God, when will it be my turn?” - because I am human, and those thoughts run through my mind, too.

But the root of those questions is the noise of comparison. I really have to pay attention to it because one thought of comparison turns into twenty more.

I am so grateful for the Lord and His heart toward us. I’m grateful for Scripture and for the trust that He knows the perfect timing, and that, for this moment, He has called me to celebrate and love on my girls around me, and I am SO grateful I get to share this moment with them.

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Have you ever been in a season where everyone around you was living something you wished you were living too?

This starts for us in childhood.

We can’t wait to be in middle school.
Then high school.
Driver’s license? Sign me up.
Prom?
College!
Then it’s the adult job (and then most of us just want to go back to college).

Then it seems to be the season of engagement, and everyone is there, except you.
Marriage… except.. where’s my person?
Children…
The list goes on, and it always comes back to comparison.

Comparison is loud, and it’s hard not to compare when social media is everywhere. TV shows and movies have convinced us our lives should look a certain way. The people we follow create a narrative in our heads that we should look the same, dress the same, and become the same. Even though God never intended for us to look alike. He knit each of us together so complex and so marvelous. We are His workmanship, made on purpose, for a purpose.

The noise of comparison devalues the life the Lord has already numbered for you. Psalm 139 tells us that every single one of our days is recorded by Him. Comparing your life to someone else’s doesn’t do your soul any good; it just takes your eyes off the good and perfect Father and puts them solely on yourself.

So let’s quiet the noise of comparison.
Let’s release it, and fill that space with silence instead.

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Lately, I’ve been practicing silence more than ever. Stillness has never come naturally to me. I used to need to be doing something all the time, and if silence crept into my day, I would fill it immediately.

Don’t get me wrong, I still love a good agenda, and I still love staying busy. But over the last few years, I’ve worked on this part of myself. Now, when something feels off in my life, when I can’t hear from the Lord, when I feel spiritually distant, when comparison starts creeping in, I know it’s time to get back to the Word and get quiet enough to hear from the Father.

So over the past couple of months, I’ve taken silence to a whole new level:

1. On walks. I find so much peace here. No earphones, no podcast; just walking and praying.

2. While working out. I never thought I’d see the day I wasn’t blasting pump-up music while lifting, but on the days I’m not in a class, it’s complete silence. There’s something strange and comforting about it. It’s just the Lord and me, and I invite Him into that space.

3. In my car. This has been the hardest but most fulfilling one. I usually want a podcast or music playing the second I get in. But I’ve noticed that when I’m restless and can’t figure out what I actually want to listen to, that’s usually the sign I need silence instead. I use that time to breathe, relax, and pray.

The silence always brings my focus back to Him and releases whatever noise has built up in my head.

And if I’m honest, the root of most of that noise for any of us is comparison. Job, motherhood, finances, children, marriage, friendship, body image, vacations. You name it, it always comes back to comparison.

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This brings me to 1 Kings 19:11-12, when God told Elijah to go stand on Mount Sinai, the mountain of God:

“The Lord said, ‘Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.’ Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind, there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.”

The Lord was not in the noise. He was in the whisper.

Comparison is noise. It fills the space that was always meant to be spent listening to what the Lord says about you.

That soft, gentle whisper… that’s where you’ll find His voice.

If you can remove the noise, release it, and fill that space with silence instead, you will hear Him. You will be filled. You will find joy and peace in the middle of whatever circumstance you’re walking through.

So release the noise, and move toward the true source of life, Jesus.

Comparison is loud.
He is quiet.

Love,
Katie Jane 🤍