“Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4 NIV
A jealous person complains about what God hasn’t provided and objects to another person’s blessings. There are three main causes of jealousy. The first is insecurity. Uncertainty over his position as king led Saul to view David, the giant killer, as competition. A sense of inadequacy can cause jealousy. The second cause of jealousy is selfishness. Saul resented the crowd’s praise of David for his battlefield successes. We fall into the same trap when we compare our situation to someone else’s. Jealousy can surface when we see a person who has a better marriage, family, job, or financial position. Finally, pride is the third cause of jealousy. Saul’s ego wouldn’t let him enjoy David’s accomplishment. Pride will make us highly critical of another’s success. To be free of jealousy, we must do four things. First, we need to confess our emotional state to God and acknowledge His right to bless someone else. Second, we should thank Him for what He’s doing in that person’s life. Third, we need to ask Him to fill our hearts with love for that individual. Finally, we should ask the Lord to bless him or her even more. God will honour our prayer and replace our spirit of jealousy with one of love and thankfulness. To prevent future attacks of envy, we must stay focused on the Lord and what He’s doing through us. All of us battle with jealousy on occasion. When we recognize this negative attitude, let us act quickly to get rid of it. Otherwise, it damages our relationships and our spiritual health.
PRAYER THOUGHT
Lord, as we delight in You, lead us to delight in Your blessings on others.
PRAYER FOR TODAY
Lord, we acknowledge that there are times when we battle with jealousy. Help us to recognize this negative attitude, to act quickly to get rid of it. Preventing it from damaging our relationships and our spiritual health. AMEN
INTERNATIONAL BIBLE READING ASSOCIATION (IBRA)
John 20:24-29
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