Be Grateful, Not Envious
For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. (James 3:16)
There are so many joyful aspects of celebrating this time of year. You have the opportunity to gather with those you love and are close to. You are able to give and receive gifts. You get to celebrate, laugh, and catch up with people you may not have seen in a while. It’s such a wonderful time of year. However, there can be the potential for a lot of jealousy and envy to rise up in the midst of all the celebrating.
Maybe you’re the only one at your family gathering who doesn’t have a significant other there with you. So instead of enjoying spending time with those you love, you’re occupied with jealous feelings, wishing you had a special someone by your side. Or maybe money has been tight this year and you had to cut back on the Christmas shopping, so you’re feeling jealous of the people around you who seem to have more than enough money to make Christmas extra special. Or maybe you’ve received a lot of wonderful gifts from your family and friends, but your neighbor got a brand-new car for Christmas. So now instead of being grateful for your presents, you can’t stop staring at theirs in the driveway next door.
Jealousy, when unchecked by the power of the Holy Spirit, causes chaos, disaster and disorder in the life of the believer: “For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there is disorder and every evil thing (James 3:16).” Instead of bringing people together, jealousy drives them apart. Instead of producing peace, it produces strife. Instead of inviting others into fellowship, it erects a wall of false pretense as a defense against our brothers and sisters in Christ. It produces confusion and everything evil. It is an enemy of our hearts.
So my encouragement to you, in light of all of that, is to choose gratitude and joyfulness when you’re tempted to be green with jealousy. You have so much to be thankful for this year. If you took the time, I bet you could make a list of the ways God has been good to you over the past 12 months. Let’s not forget about those things because we’re too busy envying someone else. I guarantee you’ll be amazed at the effect a grateful heart can have.
There are so many joyful aspects of celebrating this time of year. You have the opportunity to gather with those you love and are close to. You are able to give and receive gifts. You get to celebrate, laugh, and catch up with people you may not have seen in a while. It’s such a wonderful time of year. However, there can be the potential for a lot of jealousy and envy to rise up in the midst of all the celebrating.
Maybe you’re the only one at your family gathering who doesn’t have a significant other there with you. So instead of enjoying spending time with those you love, you’re occupied with jealous feelings, wishing you had a special someone by your side. Or maybe money has been tight this year and you had to cut back on the Christmas shopping, so you’re feeling jealous of the people around you who seem to have more than enough money to make Christmas extra special. Or maybe you’ve received a lot of wonderful gifts from your family and friends, but your neighbor got a brand-new car for Christmas. So now instead of being grateful for your presents, you can’t stop staring at theirs in the driveway next door.
Jealousy, when unchecked by the power of the Holy Spirit, causes chaos, disaster and disorder in the life of the believer: “For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there is disorder and every evil thing (James 3:16).” Instead of bringing people together, jealousy drives them apart. Instead of producing peace, it produces strife. Instead of inviting others into fellowship, it erects a wall of false pretense as a defense against our brothers and sisters in Christ. It produces confusion and everything evil. It is an enemy of our hearts.
So my encouragement to you, in light of all of that, is to choose gratitude and joyfulness when you’re tempted to be green with jealousy. You have so much to be thankful for this year. If you took the time, I bet you could make a list of the ways God has been good to you over the past 12 months. Let’s not forget about those things because we’re too busy envying someone else. I guarantee you’ll be amazed at the effect a grateful heart can have.
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