Envy

This time of year many people envy those of us that live in Florida.  While they are enduring subzero temperatures, we are walking the beaches.  Envy tends to be one of those acceptable characteristics.  We all do it, it’s human nature.  As with all of the deadly sins, we take it to an extreme.

We envy those with wealth and so we steal from them, judge them and gossip about them.  We envy other’s bodies and so we pay to look like them.  We envy those of other races, we envy those who never seem to face obstacles.

Envy is a dangerous form of discontentment that allows us to justify hate.  We are discontent with our life, our jobs, our homes, our looks, our talents, etc.  When I am envious of another, I am taking stock of their blessings instead of my own.  Ironically, we envy what others have, but we seldom envy the hard work that went into acquiring it.  We envy those that are in physical shape, but we don’t want to have to work-out fives days a week to get that body.  So, we are back to sloth.

In Rick Warren’s book, “The Purpose Driven Life”, there are five words that hit me like a ton of bricks the first time I read it.  Those five words are, “You are not an accident.”  You are a unique individual with talents and skills that others do not have.  You have a purpose in this life that you, and you alone, can fulfill.  Stop looking at others and what they have.  Stop looking at what you do not have.  What is your passion?  If you could do anything and know you would not fail, what would you do?  Why aren’t you doing it?

I love (and envy) James Earl Jones’s voice.  We all recognize it, it has made him famous.  I wonder if he envied those who spoke clearly and without a stutter?  Yes, James Earl Jones had/has a stutter and was mute for many years due to his insecurity of speaking.  Mel Tillis, Marilyn Monroe, Winston Churchill and Moses all stuttered.  All of them became famous from their speaking, singing or acting careers.

I challenge you to let go of envy, look within yourself and be the best that you can be.  I challenge you to press through the struggles of comparing yourself to others.  Compare yourself to only yourself.  Are you a better person today that you were yesterday?