Hey, I’m Shannon.
And I’ve been a Comparison Girl for as long as I can remember. Literally, my first memory at age four, is of feeling humiliated because someone found out that I could not read. Oh, the humiliation!
It seems silly now. Why was I so worried about being exposed as an illiterate preschooler? Yet some of my current struggles are just as absurd. Why do I worry about being exposed as a less-than-perfect mom? Or a middle-aged woman who struggles with her weight? Or a Christian who still sins?
The constant effort to prove that I measure up (or try to hide when I don’t), does not lead to a life of freedom and joy. Here’s what does: learning to live me-free. I hope you’ll stick around and join me in learning these lessons from Jesus on me-free living in a measure-up world!
Is this the first time we’ve met? Welcome! If you have more questions about me, come visit my “about me” page!
Do you compare yourself?
On social media, in the neighborhood, at church, or the school drop-off lane, do you drive yourself to prove that you measure up? Do you feel ashamed when you don’t? Measuring yourself against others isn’t healthy. And it isn’t God’s plan. In fact, the way of Jesus is completely upside down from this measure-up world. He invites us to follow him and be restored to freedom, confidence, and joy.
Join me, as I share what I’ve discovered about my own measure-up fears and get-ahead pride. In this six-week study, we’ll explore the conversations Jesus had and the stories he shared with people who—like us—were comparing themselves.
Let’s leave measure-up comparison behind and connect with those around us by choosing Jesus’s me-free way of living: lifting others up and pouring ourselves out!
Shannon Popkin helps us take a fresh and challenging look at the everyday mindsets we wrestle with. Showing us God’s higher ways straight from the life of Jesus, she calls us from our me-focused thinking to His kingdom-focused purposes. After this study and with the power of the Holy Spirit, I won’t allow those thoughts to stay around any longer.
If you struggle with measuring up. If you’re worried about what people think. If you dread someone seeing you in a less than ideal situation, then you’re human. We all struggle with comparing ourselves to others in some way. That means we all need Shannon’s honest and wise words on the pages of this book. I know I did and I’m betting you do, too!
Shannon Popkin has done it again! She has masterfully written another must read to speak to the struggles of our soul. Inviting us to look up and listen to the tender truths of God and learning to silence the lies of the enemy against us, Shannon shows us how to finally live freely in a cultural of continual comparison. For every woman who has an area of her life where she wonders if she is truly enough- here is your answer.
“Comparison. We all fight it. But for many of us, it feels like we are losing the battle. Why? Because what we need, to combat comparison, is not simply the knowledge that it hurts us, but the tools to resist it, and that is exactly what Shannon Popkin has given us. With fresh insight, biblical grounding, and light-hearted humor, Comparison Girl offers practical steps for curbing this temptation. If comparison is your struggle, this book is your guide!”
Leader’s Kit
Now Available!
- 6 Teaching Sessions, which correlate with the chapters of the book
- DVD + digital downloads
- One Comparison Girl book
- One Journaling Workbook
- Leader Discussion Guide
Each session is about 18 – 25 minutes long. Dive deeper into what Jesus teaches about the difference between comparison in the world and comparison in the Kingdom.
Sign up for leader updates.
Journaling Workbook
The companion Comparison Girl Workbook offers:
- A place to record your responses to the Bible study and application questions at the end of each lesson.
- Thought-provoking stories and journal prompts, which correlate to each chapter’s theme.
- Space for taking video session notes, plus the printed verses and additional observation study and discussion questions.
- Extra prayers, quotes, and verses to encourage you on your journey.
- Available either as part of the Leader’s Kit, or as a separate purchase.
Get the Comparison Girl Bonuses:
Comparison Girl Screen Savers – there are 12 in all!
Turn your comparison struggles over to the Lord.
An illustrative drawing in Philippians 2:7-9.
All of these & more!
Comparison Girl Chapters & Quotes:
Author and dear friend, Shannon Popkin, expertly and biblically walks us through several markers and mistakes of living according to comparison in this measure up world and gently points us to a better way. Written with humor and brutal honesty, Shannon sheds the pretense and fights for her readers’ hearts with biblical wisdom, humility and truth. Comparison Girl is a must-read for this generation of girls and the next.
With a humble pen and a bold honesty, Shannon invites us to look closely at our subtle “comparison game” and recognize the truth behind it— Comparison is not just a harmless habit; it’s an all-out attack on the life we’ve been created to live. Using the very words of Jesus, Shannon shows us how to trade the exhaustion of measure-up comparison for the exhilaration of me-free living. Get ready to wage war and take back the abundant life you were created to enjoy!
I just threw this puzzle in the trash (see my reel).
After using all the pieces in my box, a LOT is still missing—as you can see! Surely, my puzzle isn't supposed to look like THIS at the end.
All I know is: I've invested HOURS into a puzzle that has huge sections missing—which reminds me of my life.
I've spent decades laboring over the pieces and trying to create something beautiful—or at least “put together”. But here I am, with less “pieces” and big sections still missing—wondering what went wrong.
Anybody who can relate?
Some people just shrug and keep working on a puzzle they’ll never finish. Or they just live with the brokenness. But that's like gluing my puzzle with the missing pieces and calling it good.
What GOD called good was his original design in the garden—kinda like my puzzle’s box lid. And since God will restore the earth in the new creation, that’s what we (those who are in Christ) have to anticipate! One day the new creation will mirror Eden.
Now, I’m not suggesting you throw away your life, like I did with the puzzle. But maybe spend less time agonizing over the ways you’re still not “put together” and more time setting your mind on things above and on the “lid”—anticipating the day all will be put right.
#puzzle #puzzler #puzzlesofinstagram #puzzling #puttogether #missingpieces
Just booked my hotel room today for the Proclaim Conference in Charlotte, NC Feb. 11-13!
I’m serving as a table host and I’d love to save you a spot beside me.
The conference is brand new and includes:
🎙 cutting edge topics
🎙instruction for seasoned professionals
🎙 education for those just starting out
🎙 Encouraging keynotes
🎙 inspirational worship
🎙 expert panels
🎙 Small group discussion🎙 coaching sessions
And more!!
Affiliate link in my bio. Please let me know if you have questions. I am so excited about this!
#proclaimconference
#christianauthor #christianwriter #christianspeaker #letyourlightshine #cityonahill #forhisownglory #liftjesushigh #influencer #heretoserve #platform #buildyourplatform #platformbuilding #buildlikejesus #followmeasifollowhim #followJesus #collab #shewritesforhim #swfh #speakuprocks #hopewriterlife #hopewriters #hopewriters #shespeaks #shespeakstruth #shespeakslife #shespeaksonline #shespeaksministries
Is it too late to make a New Year’s resolution? My ‘22 goal is to get Christmas cards out on time!
🎄Merry Christmas🎄 from the Popkin’s—and Happy New Year as well!
#chronicallylate #merrychristmasanyway #newyearsresolution #lateforthattoo @wendicurtisphoto
Next time you have a 10 minute car ride, shutting kids or running errands, tune in to this episode of “In the Word, On the Go”!
I enjoyed talking with @thorntonchamp about a verse that portrays Mary as the exact opposite of a Control Girl.
https://www.wordonthego.net/226
So grateful that Christmas isn’t just a great story; it’s THE story that changes everything.
I’m so thankful that all three of my kids are choosing to be shaped by this overarching story of Jesus. Nothing else matters as much as this.
On the podcast this week, I told a story about my son going from faucet to faucet, looking for hot water. But he wasn't going to find any, because all of the water in our house came from the same source.
It's the same in the world, right? People bring their empty bucket from faucet to faucet, not realizing that the source of everything they're looking for is GOD.
Don't miss an opportunity to talk about the One True Story this Christmas. Because Christmas is a time when people are a little more aware than usual of their deep emptiness. They notice their endless frustration—partly because they think Christmas should be the fullest time of the year. And it's painfully NOT.
As you interact with extended family, or attend parties, or connect with neighbors, how can you look for ways to make the true story of God relevant? That's what this bonus episode is all about.
#biblepodcast #livelikeitstrue #biblestorypodcast #biblereadings #biblereadingpodcast #readthebible #christianpodcast #christianpodcastsforwomen #newpodcast #christianpodcastcommunity #sparkmediapodcastnetwork
#encouragement #podcastsforwomen #storiesofjesus #truebiblestories #truestory #biblediscusstiontopics #biblestudy #thestoryofthebible #beastoryteller #storyofthebible #dgroup #smallgroup #storying #sharethestory #onetruestory
https://www.shannonpopkin.com/2021/12/18/e10-bonus-stirring-souls-with-the-true-story/
How can you stir up curiosity in someone who thinks the story of a baby who was lying in a manger thousands of years ago is irrelevant to their lives?
In this bonus Christmas episode, we’re going to break from our pattern and focus in on sharing the story the Bible tells with others.
Darin and Joy have served in youth ministries in the UK for over twenty years and have launched @starttostir , helping everyday people like us stir up curiosity in those who are seemingly disinterested in faith.
How can we ask good questions and keep the conversation going (instead of shutting it down)? And how do we find a point of relevancy, for even bringing up something related to the Gospel?
Make sure you stick around till the end where Darin shared five different things we can look for to stir up conversations about faith. Since they live in the UK, they’re experiencing what we probably soon will in America: a completely post-Christian culture. They gave me so much to think about, and I know the same will be true for you.
Link in bio.
Have you surprised anyone yet this Christmas? I highly recommend. You get back way more joy than you’d ever know how to give.
Tonight, I got to make a surprise visit to this group from Macedonia Baptist Church! They were just finishing up chapter 5 of #ControlGirl (or “Controladora” in Spanish!) and their leader @eldahaak invited me to join in the Christmas celebration. It was such a time of JOY!
I’m so grateful for my Spanish publisher @editorialportavoz for the opportunity to share my study with Spanish speaking sisters—both on other continents and here in my own neighboring community of Holland, MI.
God is so good to knit our hearts together!
P.S. @betsytgomez we were watching you sing Christmas carols on TV!! I said, “Wait. Is that Betsy? Do you know her?” And they said, “Do you?!” #smallworld #christmasjoy #myspanishsisters
My baby is graduating… 😩🥰❤️ So proud of you, @cadepopkin
Comment your favorite and help me choose! 🙂
“Do you not even care?”
the disciples ask Jesus—asleep on the cushion in the boat. There’s perhaps an edge of accusation in their tone.
It’s hard to understand when God seems to be “sleeping” when you’re in the middle of a storm. Have you ever wondered if God even cares? I have.
But as @sarahpwalton
and I discussed on episode 9, it’s helpful to consider my options.
If I abandon God, saying, “You’re not listening!” is this going to alleviate my fear? Where is the comfort in being my own God?
In the storm, there is only Jesus. Only him!
Living like this story is true means letting the One who can calm the storm decide when He’ll calm the storm. Because, after all, He is God (and I am not).
Storms press me to ask hard questions about God’s sovereignty, and face the wrong assumptions I’ve made about Him.
Here’s the question: What is God teaching me about Himself in a storm, that I could never have learned on a sunny day?
#biblepodcast #livelikeitstrue #biblestorypodcast #biblereadings #biblereadingpodcast #readthebible #christianpodcast #christianpodcastsforwomen #newpodcast #christianpodcastcommunity #sparkmediapodcastnetwork #encouragement #podcastsforwomen #storiesofjesus #truebiblestories #truestory #biblediscusstiontopics #biblestudy #thestoryofthebible #beastoryteller #storyofthebible #dgroup #smallgroup #storying #mark4 #jesuscalmingthestorm #sarahwalton
We've got a choice. We can either be the white-knuckled hero of our own story, or we can let go of the "chunky board book" illusion, and cling to the bigger story filled with promises for the people of God.
That's what I shared last night, with the women at Christ Church in Muskegon, MI. Many women were challenged to open their hearts and surrender both big things and small, to Him.
What a beautiful close to our time, as 250 women sang, "All is calm, all is bright...🎶”
Is this how you feel about Christmas 2021? When God is the author of our story, you can have a calm heart, and the future is impossibly bright—not because you're in control, but because He is.
#surrenderingchristmas #jesusisthehero #womensministry #christianspeaker #womenschristmasevent
They’ve got a whole lot of nothing when the storm is about to break their boat to pieces, and all they have to turn to at that point is Christ. @swalts14
On episode 9 of “Live Like It’s True” you'll be so encouraged by Sarah's vulnerability, her faith, and her hope in Jesus—the one who calms our storms.
You can find more of Sarah’s ministry by following @sarahpwalton or her site:
https://setapart.net/
#biblepodcast #livelikeitstrue #biblestorypodcast #biblereadings #biblereadingpodcast #readthebible #christianpodcast #christianpodcastsforwomen #newpodcast #christianpodcastcommunity #sparkmediapodcastnetwork #encouragement #podcastsforwomen #storiesofjesus #truebiblestories #truestory #biblediscusstiontopics #biblestudy #thestoryofthebible #beastoryteller #storyofthebible #dgroup #smallgroup #storying #mark4 #jesuscalmingthestorm #sarahwalton
Jesus is the DOOR. This is what I got to share with the lovely women of Corner Bible Church at their Christmas Tea.
Don’t let anyone (including you) tell you that you have to get your credentials together before you approach the door back to God. You don’t. Everything has been covered by Jesus.
But returning to God must be done with a heart posture of surrender, saying, “You are God and I am not.”
Have you walked through that door? Jesus Christ was born to make it possible! Don’t miss the opportunity.
Questions? DM me. I’d love to talk more about Jesus and how the story of Christmas changes everything for you!
#livelikeitstrue #ispeaktoserve #lovemakingnewfriends #makeJesusknown #bibleteacher #letsopentheword #christmasevent2”21 #jesusbirthday #womenseventspeaker #christianspeaker #christianspeakersandwriters #christianwomensevent
Movie and popcorn night tonight at the Popkins!🍿Isn’t this a great gift from @rachel.joy.bailey and my friends at @peacechurchmi ?
After a busy ministry week I’m looking forward to some time at home, being lazy. AND my friend @jfbrauns and I were swapping all time movie favorites. I’m kinda glad our lists didn’t overlap (except for #youvegotmail ) so now I have some new #oldiesbutgoodies to watch!
What’s your all time favorite movie—and approximately how many times have you watched it?
Btw, @jfbrauns I forgot one: Serendipity! And this is the best time to watch because it opens with them Christmas shopping at a department store! #favoritemovies #oldiesbutgoodies #christmasmovies #movienight
Have you ever felt like God was asleep while you were enduring a storm? Have you ever been tempted to ask, "Does God even care about me?"
In episode 9, Sarah Walton and I talk about this story of Jesus calming the storm for his disciples—but not immediately.
I think you're going to be so encouraged by Sarah's vulnerability, her faith, and her hope in Jesus—the one who calms our storms.
Follow Sarah Walton @sarahpwalton
#biblepodcast #livelikeitstrue #biblestorypodcast #biblereadings #biblereadingpodcast #readthebible #christianpodcast #christianpodcastsforwomen #newpodcast #christianpodcastcommunity #sparkmediapodcastnetwork #encouragement #podcastsforwomen #storiesofjesus #truebiblestories #truestory #biblediscusstiontopics #biblestudy #thestoryofthebible #beastoryteller #storyofthebible #dgroup #smallgroup #storying #mark4 #jesuscalmingthestorm #sarahwalton
Jesus is the hero! That’s what I got to share last night with the beautiful women of Peace church.
The holidays are the time we try harder to make everything perfect, so we’re even more aware that paradise has been lost—and we have no way back to the God and the garden we were made to enjoy forever.
But that’s the point of Christmas! Jesus is our way back. He’s the hero of the story. #hesthehero #nothingisimpossible #womenschristmasevent #christmas2021
Have you been "born again"? Have you "looked to Jesus" as your only Savior from death?
Jesus used these two images to explain to Nicodemus how he could have eternal life:
First, a baby being born. Jesus said Nicodemus needed to be born again. But since babies offer nothing to their own birthing process, how could Nicodemus have this spiritual re-birth?
That's where the second image is helpful.
Jesus reminded Nicodemus of the bronze snake Moses put on a pole. The people were dying of snake bites, but if they looked to the pole, they were saved. In this same way, anyone who lifts their eyes to Jesus on the cross, can escape eternal death.
No, Nicodemus couldn't save himself. Yes, he could look to his Savior and be born again and have eternal life.
>>Same is true for you!<<
Listen to my whole conversation with @TheBrewsterHome, @TruthLoveParent on my podcast, Live Like It's True - episode 8.
#biblepodcast #livelikeitstrue #biblestorypodcast #biblereadings #biblereadingpodcast #readthebible #christianpodcast #christianpodcastsforwomen #newpodcast #christianpodcastcommunity #sparkmediapodcastnetwork #encouragement #podcastsforwomen #storiesofjesus #truebiblestories #truestory #biblediscusstiontopics #biblestudy #thestoryofthebible #beastoryteller #storyofthebible #dgroup #smallgroup #storying #storyofnicodemus #bornagain #truthloveparent #john3
Finishing up my slides, and thinking about Mary's amazing example of surrender.
An angel shows up unexpectedly with news that will completely upend Mary's life. And there are no question marks at the end of any of his sentences; only periods:
You will conceive.
You will give birth.
You will name him Jesus.
After asking, "Yes, but how?", Mary says, "I am the Lord's servant. Let it be to me as you have said."
You shouldn't give your life away to just anybody who shows up, asking for it. But when the Most High God sends word that he has a role for you to play, this is exactly what you should say.
I am the Lord's servant. I serve at the pleasure.
What is God asking you to surrender to Him, this Christmas?
#controlgirl #sweetsurrender #speaking #womensevent #christmasevent #christmassurrender #visitfromtheangel #luke1 #motherofjesus #marydidyouknow #letitbetome
“Often I hear people say, 'Well, I've always been a Christian.'
“This idea that their standing with God is based on the fact that they were born into a church-going family [isn’t true].
“It doesn't matter who your parents are. That doesn't mean that you are spiritually born again.” - @thebrewsterhome
Come listen as Aaron and I talk through the story of Nicodemus and the astonishing truth that we must—and can—be born again, if we're to live forever.
Check out Aaron's podcast @truthloveparent
My parents. My husband and kids. Traditions. Bounty. Freedom.
Thank you, Lord, for so many blessings.
