Do you find yourself tempted to envy someone? We can envy when we have been lazy and have not put in the effort required to accomplish something. But often, we’re working hard and can’t understand why someone or many someones seem to enjoy a level of success that we don’t. Either way, we can become discontent with where God has us. And instead of trusting that He knows what’s best, we grumble, complain, and risk becoming bitter and resentful.
Today’s Readings:
Nehemiah 1 & 2
Psalm 88.11-18
Proverbs 21.25-26
Acts 25.1-27
Are You Tempted to Envy Someone?
Proverbs 21.25-26:
Grumbling, Complaining & Envying
The desire of the lazy man kills him, for his hands refuse to labor. He covets greedily all day long, but the righteous gives and does not spare.
These two verses make me think of a story I read about a famous pianist. A man came up to him once and said, “I would give my life to be able to play like that.” The pianist replied, “I did.”
I am not advocating neglecting family or other God-given priorities to seek selfish goals, but so often we want things that others have without being willing to do what it takes to obtain them. In the case of a lazy man, he covets the things that others have but isn’t willing to work to acquire them.
This is an attitude that is rampant in our society today. Many people, even Christians, have an entitlement attitude, even when it comes to spiritual things.
We envy others’ gifts and talents, their lifestyles, and their levels of success.
Sometimes we compare our spouses to theirs, secretly envy them, and wonder why our spouse can’t be more like theirs. Then we grumble and complain, nag, or get bitter and resentful.
Faithfully Living to Please Him
We are called to live our lives to please Him (2 Cor. 5.9-10) and trust that if we seek to be doers of the Word, we will be blessed in the ways He sees fit (Jas. 1.22-25).
Living to please Him includes things like loving people biblically, choosing to forgive, being faithful in our service to God and others, and spending time with Him in Bible reading and prayer. We don’t do these things to gain God’s love or maintain our salvation. That was done once and for all at the cross if we belong to Him. But God does bless patterns of obedience, again, as He sees fit.
When it comes to financial, career, or even ministry success, we are simply to be faithful (1 Cor. 4.2). We should work at whatever the Lord has given us to do wholeheartedly (Eph. 6.5-8) for His glory and not our own (1 Cor. 10.31), rather than with an “if-I-do-this-God-owes-me-something” attitude. And we are to trust Him with the results, no matter what that looks like. That will only happen if we realize that our Heavenly Father knows what is best for us.
Today’s Other Readings:
Nehemiah 1 & 2:
Nehemiah’s Cushy Job
Nehemiah had a rather cushy job as cupbearer to the king (aside from the fact that if someone tried to poison the king he would drink it first!). But because of his job, he would have been a trusted friend to the king. He lived in the palace with many of its perks and benefits, but it didn’t stop him from grieving for and being concerned about the well-being of the people who had returned to Jerusalem.
And he wasn’t just concerned, he was willing to do something about the situation—to give up his comfortable position, take a dangerous journey, go to a city that was largely unprotected, and undertake an enormous project.
He reminds me of Moses who:
… refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt (Heb. 11.24-26).
What if …?
What if God called you to the mission field? Or to quit your job and work for Him full-time? Or to accept a job with fewer financial benefits so you’re available to serve Him more? Would you be willing?
When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray, He gave them the model prayer (actually an outline of the things we should pray) that we often refer to as “The Lord’s Prayer.” Luke 11.2-4:
2 So He said to them, “When you pray, say:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
3 Give us day by day our daily bread.
4 And forgive us our sins,
For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.”
Notice that phrase, “Your kingdom come. Your will be done.” Have you stopped to think about what that means? We are saying, “whatever you want, Lord.”
In the Garden of Gethsemane, as Jesus was faced with the inevitability of the cross, He prayed, “… not my will, but yours be done” (Lk. 22.42).
How do you pray? Are you willing to surrender your will to His? Why or why not? What does that say about your level of faith and trust in Him?
Psalm 88.11-18:
A Regular Time of Prayer
But to You I have cried out, O Lord, and in the morning my prayer comes before You (v. 13).
The psalmist, even in his distress, not only cried out about his specific problems, but he prayed “in the morning.” He maintained a regular time of prayer and meditation before God.
Acts 25.1-27:
“I must also …”
Paul was in Caesarea, held in jail though not formally charged. Paul knew the Jews were plotting to kill him and probably understood that he would not get a fair hearing in Jerusalem. So, instead of agreeing to return there, he used his right as a Roman citizen to appeal to Caesar.
Earlier in Acts, we read:
When these things were accomplished, Paul purposed in the Spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, “After I have been there, I must also see Rome” (Acts 19.21).
God was leading Paul to Rome. Paul understood that he must go there, but he may or may not have known that he would go there as a prisoner.
Sometimes God in His wisdom chooses not to show us everything that is ahead. Instead, He shows us just what we need to know so we can take the next step. He may know that we would try to take control and make something happen. Other times, He may know that the big picture would only overwhelm us. And other times, He is growing us in our ability to trust Him. Whatever His reasons, we are to trust Him one day at a time.
Coming Up:
In the coming days, we’ll talk about how flattery can be a snare to the hearer, how to move from grief to joy, and what some have called the great exchange.
I hope you’ll sign up so you don’t miss any of them. You might also like to check out our YouTube channel.
If this post spoke to you, I would love it if you would share it on your favorite social media platform.
And if you don’t already have a copy, you might want to purchase a copy of my eBook, 10 Benefits of Keeping a Spiritual Journal. It’s available on Kindle or in paperback (the paperback has 31 days of blank journaling pages with prompts to help you get started).
Blessings as you grow in Christ,
Donna ♥
Note about this post:
I began blogging through the Bible in 2012 and have done so every year since then. These posts are the product of many edits and additions throughout those years. Some days I make major changes, other days fewer.
A while ago, I read Jen Wilkin’s book None Like Him about the attributes of God. One is His incomprehensibility. In it, she says, “God is incomprehensible. This does not mean that he is unknowable, but that he is unable to be fully known.”
I have found that to be true each year as I’ve gone back through the Bible. Sometimes I find myself feeling as if a passage just appeared there for the first time. I’m reminded that no matter how many times we read through the Bible, we have only scratched the surface. I hope you feel the same.
Indeed these are the mere edges of His ways,
And how small a whisper we hear of Him!
But the thunder of His power who can understand?” (Job 26.14)
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