Dear Lord. There is no
commandment that says Thou Shalt Not Be Jealous but perhaps there is close link
to the one forbidding our “coveting anything that is your neighbor’s” and there
are many verses that say we are to be joyful over another’s success. You
have given me talents, and I have developed them. The person that I feel somewhat
or a lot jealous towards has been given by You different talents,
and that person has been faithful to develop them. If it was a gift they
received from someone in this world, then it was the right of the person who
gave it to give to whomever he or she wished. In the parable of the day’s wage,
the landowner maintained the right to pay whatever he so desired, and the other
workers who had agreed to work for such and such amount had no business arguing
against another receiving the same. I have received gifts from Your hand that
during my life others watching or observing thought were special and perhaps
unwarranted; but You gave them anyways, and I should, now, not begrudge someone
the blessing You’ve bestowed them.
Forgive me for jealousy. Take it from
me. I don’t want it. I want just
what You have given me and have meant for me. With these things I shall be
content and give thanks. For You are the Lord and have the sovereign right to
select what, exactly, You will give and to whom it shall be given. I am not
God. I do not make such choices. But I choose now to be thankful and not
trouble You with my ungratefulness about all my other blessings again. I
worship You as the King of kings and the Lord of lords. You have the high honor. I
shall not pine to have Your honor. The devil did that and was cast immediately out of
heaven. James the Apostle said, “The church
member in humble circumstances does well to take pride in being exalted; the
wealthy member must find his pride in being bought low.”
I am willing to wait
for the honor until my time. I shall not be jealous of another whose time has
already arrived. No, Your timing is good, Lord. Let my face show joy I want to
feel in my heart when I see someone enjoying their new blessing. I
will not rob them of their happiness; I shall not take their accomplishment from
them away by saying something against them. Make me pure, O God. As the
Psalmist says, “Renew a right spirit within me,” that I may serve You better. I
ask all this, and for the glory of God, in "Jesus’" name. Amen.
Dear Viewer: If ever doubts come you can sing or say this last verse of Psalm 66: Blessed be God, because he has not rejected my prayer or removed his steadfast love from me!
• Up • Despair • Jealousy • Lost Soul • Stolen Possession • Opener1 • Opener2 • Praise Song •
