Major Mistakes the
Church is Making
with Single COMPARISON
Parents
& CALLING
by JON TYSON
I have struggled deeply with comparison
my whole life, and I can pinpoint the
moment its idolatrous shadow was
cast over my heart. When I was in
elementary school, I enrolled in a
local track-and-field club. Much to the
surprise of everyone around me, I ended
up excelling as an athlete and breaking
all kinds of state records. I was a
fierce and dominant competitor, and I
would come home to my parents with
a chestful of blue first-place ribbons. I
loved the feeling I got from lining up for
a race and overhearing my peers say
things like “I don’t even want to race. I
know Jon is going to win.” I would run
around that track like a junior Olympian
god, head held high, unrivaled. I didn’t
struggle with comparison then because,
in my mind, I had no equals.
44 • Solutions
Then one morning a new kid came and
watched me race. I can still see him there,
standing next to his dad and looking
straight into my eyes. I overheard one of
my friends say, “What is he doing here?
He’s the fastest kid I have ever seen.” At
that, a new kind of emotion swept over
me, one I could not articulate. It was
a defense-based anxiety, and I didn’t
like it. I won that race, but something
had awoken within me. Comparison. The
next week, to my surprise, that “fastest
kid ever” joined our club, and the
security of my world was invaded. As
we walked up to the starting line for the
first race of the day, everyone paused
to watch. The gun went off, and I began
to pump my small arms and legs like
mighty pistons. I broke away and for the
briefest of moments felt comparison