Topic: Envy Is a Sign That You Don’t Trust God [RICK WARREN Devotional 20 february 2023]
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Envy Is a Sign That You Don’t Trust God
BY RICK WARREN — FEBRUARY 20, 2023
FROM THE LIFE YOU WERE MEANT TO LIVE
“Let us run with patience the particular race that God has set before us.”
Hebrews 12:1 (TLB)
One of the signs that envy is in your heart and needs to be eliminated is that you constantly use this phrase: “It’s not fair.”
You know what that phrase sounds like: “It’s not fair that he gets to do that and I don’t!” “It’s not fair that it’s easy for her and not for me.” “It’s not fair that their kids got the award and mine didn’t.” “It’s not fair that they can afford that vacation and I can’t.”
Envy is actually a battle with God. You’re in a fight with God every time you envy. When you envy, you’re saying, “God, you blew it. You didn’t do it right. You didn’t have the brains enough to make me the way I ought to be. If you really loved me, you wouldn’t have made me me; you would have made me somebody else.”
And God says, “Huh? If I didn’t make you you, you wouldn’t exist!”
The problem is this: When you envy, you don’t trust God. You don’t believe that he has your best interest at heart. You don’t believe that he knows more than you do about what’s best for you.
You don’t have some things in life because God knows a reason that you shouldn’t have them. There are some talents God did not give you. There are some opportunities God does not give you. And there are some experiences in life you don’t get.
You can either shake your fist in anger—or trust God. God is smarter than you, and he knows better. Read that again: He knows better!
God has given each of us a race to run. You can’t run anybody else’s race, and no one else can run yours. You can either run the race God has given you, or you can make up your own race. Most people choose to make up their own race in life and then wonder why they hit dead ends.
Instead, God wants you to run the race that he has for you. He custom-designed a plan for your life. When you focus on God’s race, you won’t need to worry about the race everybody else is running. You won’t be bothered by the crowds that are cheering or jeering in the stands. You’re living for an audience of one: God.
The Bible says in Hebrews 12:1, “Let us run with patience the particular race that God has set before us” (TLB). The more you understand your own call from God, the less you’ll be worried about what God has called other people to do.
Any time spent envying other people is wasted time. Just be who God made you to be!
Talk It Over
- How do you respond to a child who says, “That’s not fair”? What can you learn from your own response to that child?
- Do you trust that God knows what you need better than you know? Why or why not?
- What has God called you to do and be? What are you doing right now to run the race that he’s planned for you?
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