FOMO No More

Verses
John 10:10 I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

Devotion
How do you react, after a hard day of working from home and helping the kids with their school work, to a Facebook post of your friends all out for a walk together smiling and laughing? How do you feel about the couple who posts a photo of them on an airplane going somewhere interesting and you are not sure if you should go to the grocery store? Are you a little sad to see others having what looks like a better life while all you see are the struggles and problems in your own life? Then you have a case of FOMO, Fear Of Missing Out.

FOMO has been around a long time. Remember the young ruler who wanted to know from Jesus what he needed to do to get into the kingdom of heaven? Jesus told him to sell all his possessions and follow Him. This young ruler left sad because he did not want to miss out on all the good things he believed came from his many possessions. On another occasion, Jesus invited a man to follow Him and the man said he would first have to bury his father. At the time, this meant that he needed to stay with his father until he died which could be years. Jesus said to let the (spiritual) dead bury the dead which seems harsh now but we don’t know what Jesus had in store for him. The man feared missing out on being with his father near his life’s end.

Fear of missing out for these two examples shows that we think we know better than God what will make us happy or will satisfy us. If only we could have this or change this. FOMO is an indicator that there is something missing in our lives. There is something better out there that others are finding and we don’t have. If we could just get invited to that event or be friends with that person or have a better marriage or more compliant kids, everything would be perfect. But I think we know, deep down, that this is not true.

So what are we missing? What was the young ruler missing and the invited man missing? They were missing Jesus in their lives. Jesus says He is the way, the truth and the life. He came to give life and life abundantly. When you are walking each day with Jesus and following His guidance and direction, you are living your best life. When you are using your God given skills and abilities to help others, you have no reason to compare yourself to others or to fear missing out. You are right where you are supposed to be.

Let Jesus fill that comparison need and replace the FOMO fear with confidence that you are where you are supposed to be. Decide to walk with Him today.