When We Envy To The Point Of Sinning
“It was so hard to leave Timmy at his first day of kindergarten today,” my friend said. “I had to turn my head so he wouldn’t see me cry.”
“You have no idea how much it hurts to be separated from your child!” I snapped.
Due to my (then) constant battle with anorexia nervosa, I was no longer able to care for my small children. I would’ve given anything to have my children return home to me after only a few short hours of school.
Looking back, I still remember the shocked expression on my friend’s face. I regret the way I spoke to her. Unfortunately, this isn’t my only regret from those unbearable years when I felt cheated out of raising my children.
“It’s not fair!” I often raged during that period of my life, erupting with the worst kind of jealousy. It was natural to want my children to be with me, but my emotions were out of control. “Why doesn’t God answer my prayers like He does for others?” I’d scream in my empty apartment.
Have you ever envied so much that your thoughts and actions became an ongoing sin issue?
This week, in our progressive goal of meditating on and obeying 1 Corinthians 13, we’ll focus on overcoming the sin of envy (verse 4 ESV):
Love is patient and kind; love does not envy …
Is there something in your life right now that causes you to be envious to the point of sinning? Perhaps a prayer request that seems to go unanswered while others’ requests are granted?
What if, every day for the rest of the Month of Love, each time we catch ourselves feeling jealous or envious, we stopped and thanked God for . . .
- His love for us,
- His plan for us,
- His perfect timing for us?
What if we . . .
- Chose to trust our compassionate heavenly Father, knowing He hasn’t forgotten about us.
- Then praised Him for His faithfulness?
- What if we thanked God for all the times He has blessed us?
Taking another step forward in overcoming sinful envy, in honor of Valentine’s Day, let’s also remember how much God loves the people we envy.
Let’s pray:
Heavenly Father, show us how our jealousy looks through Your eyes. Reveal to us how our envious ways hurt You, hurt us, and hurt our relationships. Remind us how much You love the people we envy and to trust Your sovereign plan, not only for ourselves, but for them as well. Fill us so full of Your presence that we’ll no longer be ruled by our emotions but by Your love. Amen.
What about you?
I’d love to hear your thoughts about this post. (Others might also benefit from your comment.)
- Have you ever envied so much that your thoughts and actions became an ongoing sin issue?
- What has your jealousy cost you in your relationships and spiritual growth?
- Is it worth the cost?
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Beautiful way to refocus our thoughts!
Thank you so much, Delores, for your kind words. AND thank you so much for stopping by Today Can Be Different!
Oh, I’ve been there and was for many years. It took a long time to get over my regrets and kind of start over. It was like getting a face lift to resemble somebody else. My outward appearance is basically tge same, quite a bit older now, but the inward has been transformed by the grace of God. How I wish I could go back and redo my past. Now I live with Jesus every day.
I often wish I could go back and redo years of my past, Sandra. Like you, however, I’m thankful for God’s transformative work in me!
Thank you for your faithfulness in stopping by Today Can Be Different and leaving a comment, Sandra.
I’m so sorry that you had to endure missing your small children, Sheryl; I’m sure that was very difficult as a mother for you. My envy sin was probably seeing all my church friends having their husbands in church with them! It’s been over 30 years that I’ve been going to church without my husband, and that I believe effected my children in their walk with the Lord, but as my husband’s heart has softened, I know God has a plan. One of my sons has lost his way spiritually, but I believe God has a plan for him as well. My faith has grown stronger because of it, and I know the Lord will take care of the rest! I’m not in control of this, and I have to depend on God’s perfect timing and promises for both of them! Thanks for sharing your difficult challenges in life that have made you into the woman of God you are today!️
What a sweet and compassionate comment, Kim. I will continue to pray for Tom – and for you.
I have felt hurt and anger at times over seeing others seemingly receive more outward material blessings than I have received. I have not treated others badly over it, but felt lack of contentment and felt that God had something against me. With age and maturity I have better understanding of God’s economy where less is more, the last are first, unseen is more important than seen, and we were made for His purposes rather than for working to collect what pleases us.He wants us to be about His business and not our own.
I felt sad reading of your separation from your children. Now I see how suffering like that develops compassipn in us so God does not wasye the suffering. He grows our hearts through it. That is an unseen treasure owned for eternity.
Waste, not wasye.
Hello, Janice. I agree totally. Only a wise, compassionate and powerful God could transform our painful seasons into something useable and beautiful ~ including transforming our hearts (and attitudes).
Thank you, again, for stopping by, Janice. I always appreciate your comments.
A brilliant response. I can relate but I’ve learnt a lot over the years.
I’m a changed person because of Jesus and messages such as these.
Praise God!! Me too, Sandra. And I look forward to His continued work in me!!
When I first saw the title, no particular envy came to mind. However, after reading the responses I see the theme as regrets and change. There are many things I wish I could have done differently and many past mistakes made. However, I cannot change them and so I must not let them dominate my present and future. More situations, challenges, and options will arise. I need to be aware to address them in a way that won’t be regretful later on, but sometimes that is difficult because we do not know the outcome. Just keep trying and don’t let regrets get in the way of progress to improve.
Hello, Robert. Our regrets cover several areas, don’t they? Including our behavior and words when we act out of our insecurities.
However, as you said in your comment, we must not let our past behavior dominate our present or our future. Because (as you also said) more situations will arise!
Thank you, as always, for your insights, Robert.
I can relate about regrets. I no longer live in the past but would love a do over. Isn’t it amazing that we’ve been forgiven?
It is SO amazing, Sandra!! And so very freeing!