1 Sam 8:4-7, 10-22 / Mark 2:1-12
Comparing ourselves with others can have only two consequences.
When we compare ourselves with others we will end up being either vain or bitter.
When we think that we are better than others in whatever areas, we become vain and proud and we think too highly of ourselves.
But when we think that others are better than us, we come bitter and we lament over why we are not good enough or why others are better than us.
In the 1st reading, the people made a statement that displeased the prophet Samuel when they said: Give us a king to rule over us, like the other nations.
Up till then, the Israelites didn't have any king to rule over them. God was their ruler and God sent prophets like Samuel to make known to them His decrees.
But now, it seems that the people want a king, because when they looked around at other nations that have a king, those nations seems better off.
So when the Israelites compared themselves with the other nations, they envied them and then they decided that they too want a king.
The prophet Samuel tried to dissuade them but their envy of other nations made them even more adamant. They focused on the other nations and lost their focus on God.
May we not lose our focus on God and on our need for Him. God cannot be compared with anything else.