How Envy Destroys You
Proverbs 23:17-18
7 Do not let your heart envy sinners,
but always be zealous for the fear of the Lord.
18 There is surely a future hope for you,
and your hope will not be cut off.
Video for this Service can be viewed @ Sunday, June 17, 2022
Envy verses Contentment: Which one are you finding?
Do not let your heart envy sinners,
but always be zealous for the fear of the Lord.
There is surely a future hope for you,
and your hope will not be cut off.
Proverbs 23:17-18
(Saying 15 of Thirty Sayings of the Wise)
A few years ago one of my youth ministry interns decided that he would create a memorable game night for students. One of those activities I now refer to as, the “Great Crisco Crabwalk Catastrophe”. He covered a 4’x8’ platform in black plastic and set it at a 30 degree angle. The goal was to crabwalk backward up the ramp to the top. BUT… to make it more difficult, this young man decided to cover the entire area with Crisco shortening to make it especially slippery to accomplish the goal. The harder students tried, the more they slipped until they were completely covered in Crisco. What made it a fiasco was that everything they touched or sat on was affected by their contact with this greasy, slippery stuff. (I think I got more calls from parents that night than any other time in ministry!)
There is an emotion that can create the same kind of catastrophe in a person’s life. It is called “Envy”. It is triggered when you start comparing yourself with others… who they are or what they have. Envy has to do with feeling unhappy about the success of someone else, or about what they have and, at the same time, secretly feeling inferior yourself.
It can squash healthy contentment faster than anything else. It often starts with a subtle desire that can lead to an all out obsession. It is one of the most destructive forces that can tear apart individuals and relationships. Just look at one of the first families in the Bible about the brothers Cain & Abel (Genesis 4). Cain ends up killing his brother because of envy and jealousy!
I want to address this because envy silently slips in and begins to leave its residue on many areas of our lives.
Learning to be content can only come about if we know how to effectively battle against envy! It is my hope that this Sunday you will be enlightened by the wisdom God longs to give us!
Grateful to journey together with you!
Pastor John