There are enemies, and then there are people that shouldn’t be enemies that we make into our enemies. Today I’m sharing how envy can turn us against our biggest allies.
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Book Rec: The Songs of a Warrior
The Songs of a Warrior Saul and David: A Retelling by Katy Morgan
This is published by The Good Book Company and it’s a fantastic read aloud for kids or a independent reader for late elementary, middle schoolers. My husband read this at night to the kids and it puts the biblical narrative about David and Saul into a story that is full of action and lessons. The book is faithful to the retelling of the biblical account but also adds in some characters to help with the story telling yet it does not deviate from the truth. There is a cast of characters, a map, and notes on each chapter in the back that tells the scripture references, any detail she may have left out and explanations of her writings. It’s a great read.
Good Book Company: https://www.thegoodbook.com/the-songs-of-a-warrior
Amazon: https://a.co/d/1Kt3TLk
Envy: Making Enemies out of Allies
David was a loyal servant of King Saul. Saul’s son was David’s best friend and Saul gave his daughter to David to be his wife. David wasn’t just a servant but also family. And when Saul saw the success of David he grew angry. His anger was out of envy.
Envy puts enmity between neighbors.
Envy creates enemies because it wants something someone else has. Envy is covetousness.
We are not to take our eyes off the Lord and fix our affections on what other people have.
It makes us envious.
Envy is not only covetousness but also ill will.
Envy paves the way to do things that are the opposite of righteous.
It sounds silly when we think about wanting someones pants to not fit, but these thoughts, these matters of the heart create animosity and even enmity. These sisters in Christ become our enemies when we should be linking arms with them and practicing the one another’s with them for the glory of God and for building them up. The church, Christ bride, is full of people that are different than us, but we have Christ and His Kingdom in common. And part of that is to flee from the temptation to make them our enemies. These are the people we want to do battle against darkness WITH – teammates, running mates, people who give us encouragement, hope, and build up our faith with truth because the same Jesus is our Saviour and King.
Thoughts on Envy
No. 1 The fruit of envy is rot.
Proverbs 14:30 A tranquil heart gives life to the flesh, but envy makes the bones rot. I know we want fruit that is sweet and beautiful and lovely, not that smells like decaying flesh. Remember that when we are mulling around some envious thoughts about so and so we are traversing into rotting territory. It leads to bitterness, ungratefulness and selfishness. It’s about me. My wants, my needs, my way.
No. 2 Keep you affections on God by being thankful
Envy takes our eyes off of the Good Father who gives good gifts. It takes our affection off of Him and shines a spotlight on the hole we think we have in our lives. This is missing over here and I’m going to focus my attention and affections on it.
When you envy
Repent and replace envy with truth.
Psalm 23:1 that says, “The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want.”
The word want means “to lack, be without, decrease, be lacking, have a need.”
So we can read that verse “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be without; or I shall not be lacking, or I shall not have a need.”
I think of:
2 Cor 1:19-20
19 For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who was preached among you by us—by me, Silvanus, and Timothy—was not Yes and No, but in Him was Yes. 20 For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.
Ephesians 1:3-6
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He [a]made us accepted in the Beloved.
Matthew 6
31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
The cure for envy is thankfulness to God.
It’s living in the reality of all the great treasures we have in Christ and how God provides for our needs as He sees fit. He is doing a good work in us that sometimes we don’t even realize until we look back and see an orchard. God is for us because of Christ. God has given us promises that are yet because of Christ. God knows our needs and provides for us in Christ.
Let us be thankful.
