Envy

I see Envy this way...being sad when someone else has victory and being glad when someone else loses. Now, you can apply that definition to any area of life, but have you ever noticed how sneaky envy is? We usually don't tend to envy people that are outside of the arena of life we are in. For example, I don't envy LeBron James, Bill Gates, Rachael Ray or Tom Cruise. All of these people are highly successful in their fields, but I'm not in their fields. I play basketball for fun (and hope I don't pull anything), I cook without getting paid for it, I'm on the computer but haven't invented anything to improve the quality of it & I act goofy alot, but no one would be willing to buy a ticket to see me on the big screen. Now, think about those people and who do you think would be envious of their achievements?...other NBA players, rich successful businessmen, other cooking shows & other actors. We tend to envy the people that do what we do. I may envy other Pastors or other churches. You may envy someone in the same field as you, but more than likely you won't envy outside of your personal arena of life. Look in the church, we envy the other areas of ministry that have success, other community groups that seem to grow faster than ours, or other musicians that play better than us. James 3:16 says, "for where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice." More than anything, God wants His church to be unified and orderly, and with Envy hanging around...that won't happen.

Choices

There may not be a choice in the work itself, but there is a choice about the way you do that work.

There may not be a choice in the type of kids God gives you, but there will be a choice in the direction you lead them.

There may not be a choice in the type of people you work with, but there is a choice in how you treat them.

There may not be a choice to have more than 24 hours in a day, but you will have a choice in distributing the 24 hours you’ve been given.

There may not be a choice in defining how people will treat you, but there is a choice in your attitude toward them.

My In-Laws have these words in a picture frame, plaque or something in their house and I’ve always remembered them... “Life is God’s gift to you, what you do with it is your gift to Him.”

Quick Tip on Defeating Jealousy

I think one thing that creeps into our lives and causes danger is jealousy. Jealousy can be damaging to Christians because it keeps us from encouraging others along the journey. I see it in kids all the time. Kid A gets a new toy and Kid B gets mad because Kid A was blessed. However, as adults I think we can tend to be as jealous or more jealous than children. Think about the people in your life that have a better house, job, vehicle, etc. It doesn't take much thinking before the faces of several people start to pop-up in your mind. Jealousy can be a killer! One thing to remember is this...it's much easier to behave your way into a new way of thinking than to think your way into a new way of behaving. In other words, don't wait until you feel like celebrating; celebrate until you feel like it. When someone wins, gets a new toy, accomplishes something huge, whatever, just go ahead and compliment and congratulate them. With this approachment, you can remove jealousy before it settles in and hopefully, create a habit of celebrating the blessings of others.

Search for the Pony

There’s a story that illustrates the positive attitude of the person who is willing to take responsibility for his or her life…even when circumstances seem completely out of control.

Twin boys were born to two happy parents. As the children grew, the parents noticed a big difference in the outlook each had on life.

One boy was always negative. No matter what happened, he would always manage to find something negative about every situation.

The other boy was completely the opposite. No matter what happened, he would always see the best in every situation.

The parents began to worry that each child had a problem. So one Christmas they attempted an experiment to try and change theirs son’s reactions.

For the boy with the negative attitude, they bought him some wonderful gifts; a new bike, a train set, board games and some other fun items.

To the boy with the positive attitude, they gave a pile of horse manure.

On Christmas morning, the boy who was negative was led into a room containing all his wonderful gifts. But rather than being delighted, he complained. “The bike will become dirty and scratched the first time I ride it, and the other toys will break or wear out.”

Their other son, upon seeing the pile of manure, shocked his parents with a shout of excitement.

“Why are you so excited?” they said.

He replied, “With all this manure, there’s got to be a pony in here somewhere!”

My point? When something bad happens, the challenge is to search for the pony.

Are you optimistic or pessimistic? The boy in the story may be too optimistic, but if we’re going to lean one way, why not lean in the direction of optimism?

The Quiet Game

I can remember playing the ‘quiet game’ when I was younger. Also, we played it with our girls when they were little. The quiet game is probably the most favorite game for parents to play with young kids.
I was reading at the bookstore today and a little girl was with her mother who was sitting in the reading area I was in. She kept talking and talking and the mother kept telling her to hush and be quiet. I said what any other respectable person would say, “don’t worry she’s not bothering me”…while in my head I was thinking…(have you ever heard of chuck e. cheese lady?) I started to suggest the quiet game. The quiet game is fun when you’re little, but we all come to a point in life where we figure out the quiet game. I can just bail out quickly and then talk all I want. Well, as adults I don’t think we ever really stop playing the quiet game. We play the game when we refuse to tell our true feelings because of fear. Fear of hurting feelings, dealing with pain and conflicts or cleaning up a relational mess. There are probably a lot of couples who play the quiet game everyday and then one day it all comes…usually undetected. The best way to end the quiet game is to tell your true feelings. But, who do you tell? The person that needs to hear it is what Jesus recommended in Matthew 18. I wonder if you have been playing the quiet game with someone at work, your spouse, your strong-willed child or a hateful relative. Remember, fear always lies behind the quiet game. Fear says, “God is not big enough to handle your problems.” I disagree…with God all things are possible.