Don’t Get Jealous: Learning Contentment in Christ
And by the way, the Bible talks a lot about jealousy, not just the Pharisees being envious of the attention Jesus was getting, but even in Paul's letters to Christians, he addresses it often.
Don't Get Jealous...
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Begin with the truth
Maybe it shows up with a passing facial expression, a sarcastic statement, maybe just a tinge of gossip or a small satisfying feeling when something goes wrong for someone else. If someone had a toy that another child wanted, you could tell exactly how they feel about that.
If one felt like something unfair had happened, you can see the deep frown and scowl on their four-year-old faces.
What this reveals about God
There's someone in your life who has more of something that you would like to have more of. And at this present moment, the only moment we have at our disposal, the here and now, they are in a better position than you are, and it doesn't feel good.
They may have less of something, less debt, less stress, which again, being so different from you in this exact moment causes you to feel bad about yourself, but nobody enjoys feeling bad about themselves, so instead we turn it to in some way making it about them, and then the relationship begins to disintegrate.
Let faith take root
But it would be pretty foolish to dwell on that, to say, you know, I'm just gonna think about how much taller Caleb is than me every day of the week and lament that until it gets better. So look to others, but throw out the things that are in neither of your control, like the past, how they were raised versus how you were raised, the kind of family they had versus the family that you had, differences in the way God designed you or the way your genetics work, differences and opportunities that were uniquely available to them and not available to you.
Look, all of that is a factor on where you are compared to where they are, but it's not a manageable factor.
Respond in daily life
One of the great ones that came out of it is I noticed people with exceptional relationships a couple of times a year made sure to get away from the kids and go spend some time together. So Summer and I started doing that in July around her birthday, and in December around mine, and it has been amazing, and I'm far better off having listened to those ideas and thought, hey, that is within my realm to actually do something about, instead of sitting back wondering why they pretend to have this special spark.
Listen, this can work on the positive side of gaining something, but it also works on the opposite end.
Take the idea with you.
- 01Where do I see the problem or opportunity described in “Don’t Get Jealous: Learning Contentment in Christ” in my own life?
- 02What Scripture or spiritual principle in this study most needs my attention?
- 03What one specific change can I make this week to put this teaching into practice?
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