For some reason, we tend to envy others. Big time. Be it a car, a position, a house, or a spouse, we want it. There just seems to be part of our nature that sees what we don’t have as what we need.
No matter what season of life we’re in, we tend to feel dissatisfied with who we are, or what we have, compared to someone else.
If you’re not enjoying where you are today—and always looking for something better, something new, something else—then you’ll never have freedom in life.
Never.
Ironically, even after we get what we’ve envied, instead of satisfying, it only increases our desire for more. Solomon said it this way:
And I saw that all labor and all achievement spring from man’s envy of his neighbor. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind (Ecclesiastes 4:4).
It’s pointless to try, he says; envy doesn’t satisfy.
Envy is like eating potato chips. One won’t do. You have to eat half the bag. (Unless, of course, they’re low-fat chips. Then you can eat the whole bag.) I can’t drink a coke and be satisfied, because I’m thirstier than when I started.
Envy is like that. It only fuels your desire for more; it doesn’t satisfy.
Envy is a vicious cycle.
The best way to gain freedom over envy is to realize and appreciate the blessings you already have. Then comes the tough part: be truly thankful.
Here are 4 tips to gain freedom when envy grabs you:
If you have trusted in Jesus Christ—who died for your sins and rose again—then you have a great place to begin giving thanks.
Don’t let the continual dissatisfying cycle of envy blind you to how God has blessed you right now.
Tell me what you think: Have you ever written a gratitude list? What helps you stay grateful? To leave a comment, just click here.