Tag: jealousy

January 12, 2025

January 12th, 2025

Sunday – Poetry

Reading – Psalms 4-6

Highlight Verse:

“Don’t sin by letting anger control you. Think about it overnight and remain silent. Interlude”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭4‬:‭4‬ ‭NLT‬‬

This seems like an odd line for a song.

But when you look at the whole Psalm together, you find David singing about how people were talking behind his back, trying to ruin him.

By the end of the Psalm, we hear how God protected him.

In the middle, David advises himself to stay calm, presumably because God has it all under control.

David had good reason to be angry.

Sometimes we do to. (Though sometimes we don’t).

We would do well to take David’s advice and step back, maintain our integrity, and let God take care of it.

Sometimes we fail.

Sometimes David failed.

That’s why he wrote this Psalm to remind himself and us that God has it under control.

How do you react when people bad mouth you?
Have you ever stepped back and let God take care of it?
April 18, 2024

April 18th, 2024

Thursday – Letters

Reading – James 2

Highlight Verse:

“You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror.”
‭‭James‬ ‭2‬:‭19‬ ‭NLT‬‬

In the past, this chapter made me uncomfortable. It sounds too close to trying to earn your salvation.

In fact, it is the inverse. The good works are a result of faith.

Too often, we think of faith as simply believing.

I have this world view therefore I embrace this faith.

In reality, true faith is about trust.

If we trust that Jesus spoke the truth, we will do what He tells us to do.

At the very least we will try. And when we fail, we’ll try again.

It’s easy to believe something is true.

It’s much harder to trust something enough to let it change the way we live.

As you learn more and more of Jesus’ teachings, do you find it difficult to act them out?
How would your life be different if you followed Jesus’ teachings as if your life depended on it?
January 12, 2023

January 12th, 2024

Friday – Prophets

Reading – Ezekiel 25-27

Highlight Verse:

“Son of man, Tyre has rejoiced over the fall of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Ha! She who was the gateway to the rich trade routes to the east has been broken, and I am the heir! Because she has been made desolate, I will become wealthy!’ “Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am your enemy, O Tyre, and I will bring many nations against you, like the waves of the sea crashing against your shoreline.”
‭‭Ezekiel‬ ‭26‬:‭2‬-‭3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

It is said that the LORD is a jealous God.

But that jealousy is another manifestation of His love for His people.

Most of Ezekiel is full of rebukes against Israel, but today’s reading is against the surrounding nations.

Why?

Because they bullied Israel.

Even when God allows the bullying to teach Israel a lesson, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t get emotionally involved when someone is picking on His kids.

In fact, I believe that is proof that God is a person, not just a power. But that’s another subject entirely.

The bottom line to me is the fact that God loves His children so much that He goes to extreme lengths to protect them.

Even when He disciplines His children, He loves and protects them.

If you trust in God for forgiveness and new life, you are His child!

Have you ever felt like God couldn’t love you because of the things you’ve done?
Have you come to the point where you realize that God’s love is not dependent on your actions but on your identity as a child of His?
October 18, 2023

October 18th, 2023

Wednesday – History

Reading – 2 Samuel 13-14

Highlight Verse:

“Now Absalom was praised as the most handsome man in all Israel. He was flawless from head to foot.”
‭‭2 Samuel‬ ‭14‬:‭25‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I told my wife that’s what people say about me. After she stopped laughing, I decided this would be the verse I would highlight today.

No, of course I don’t think that I’m flawless.

Neither was Absalom.

He was handsome, and very shrewd. But he wasn’t kind or forgiving.

Ok, he was kind to his sister Tamar by taking care of her after their half-brother Amnon raped her.

And then he murdered his brother.

Okay, harsh, though you might say Amnon had it coming.

Then he plotted the overthrow of his Father, King David.

Truly harsh!

But I’m getting ahead of today’s reading. Let’s just say it gets ugly.

It’s safe to say that David raised a narcissist.

Stay tuned for more of the story in coming weeks.

Can you begin to see how dramatic the true stories in the Bible are?
Does this passage make you more or less convinced of the accuracy of the Bible?
September 22, 2023

September 22nd, 2023

Friday – Prophets

Reading – Jeremiah 45-47

Highlight Verse:

“You have said, ‘I am overwhelmed with trouble! Haven’t I had enough pain already? And now the Lord has added more! I am worn out from sighing and can find no rest.’”
‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭45‬:‭3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

This chapter is unique in Jeremiah as it is written to an individual who is not a ruler. It was written to Baruch, Jeremiah’s faithful scribe.

Apparently, Baruch was having a pity party.

Through Jeremiah, God pointed out that he had allowed Baruch to survive. A privilege many Israelites did not get to share.

Pity parties are uniquely selfish.

While they are not necessarily prideful, they focus on the problems the complainer is facing rather than the many more blessings that God has supplied.

On an interesting note, I just read that Baruch is the only Old Testament character who has been fingerprinted. (Source enduringword dot com). Apparently, Baruch’s seal was recently found on some manuscripts and it contained an impression of his thumbprint.

That’s a unique blessing.

You could say that he was kept alive in a unique way longer than anyone else from that time.

Just another blessing he could have been counting.

Have you found yourself wallowing in a pity party before? (Been there, done that).
What have you done to get away from the self pity? (Focusing on others and my blessings helped me).
July 26, 2023

July 26th, 2023

Wednesday – History

Reading – 1 Samuel 19-20

Highlight Verses:

“But one day when Saul was sitting at home, with spear in hand, the tormenting spirit from the Lord suddenly came upon him again. As David played his harp, Saul hurled his spear at David. But David dodged out of the way, and leaving the spear stuck in the wall, he fled and escaped into the night.”
‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭19‬:‭9‬-‭10‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I love how honest the Bible is.

In this case we see Saul in full blown mental illness.

I won’t try to diagnose Saul nor excuse his actions. He was obviously jealous to a disturbing level.

David, on the other hand, stayed level-headed and got himself out of that bad situation. He maintained respect for Saul despite his obvious problems.

It’s so easy to lash back when we’re hurt. The injustice and feeling of persecution puts us on the defensive.

What would happen to us if we were able to stay in control and just remove ourselves from terrible situations?

In David’s case, he outlasted the persecution with integrity

which resulted in him becoming one of the greatest kings of all time.

How do you react when persecuted?
What would happen if you removed yourself from the line of fire while maintaining respect for your persecutor as a person?

If you are a mental health professional, please tell me if I am way off with this line of thought.
June 11, 2023

June 11th, 2023

Sunday – Poetry

Reading – Psalms 72-74

Highlight Verses:

“These fat cats have everything their hearts could ever wish for!
Then I realized that my heart was bitter, and I was all torn up inside.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭73‬:‭7‬, ‭21‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I grew up poor. I’ve never been wealthy by American standards (though by third world standards…).

I’ve spent a fair amount of time wishing I had what other’s have.

I’ve even speculated what I would do if I won one of those huge lottery jackpots.

That might not be a horrible thing. But is it a good thing?

I don’t think there’s anything wrong with working hard to achieve financial success. In most cases, I don’t see a problem with winning the lottery (though the money bet could probably be better used elsewhere).

But we humans can be excessive.

We wallow in jealousy or self pity.
We ignore our family and spiritual life in pursuit of wealth.
We spend money we don’t have on things we don’t need.

Before we get to the point of being all torn up inside, let’s get our priorities back in order –

God
Family
Community and Country

Most of us should have no problem keeping those priorities without driving that Mercedes to our beach house sporting our RayBans and Coach accessories.

So the next time I find myself wrenching under the hood of the old minivan (again), I’ll think about how blessed I am.

I have all I need.

Do you?
May 2, 2023

May 2nd, 2023

Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Genesis 29-30

Highlight Verse:

“When Rachel saw that she wasn’t having any children for Jacob, she became jealous of her sister. She pleaded with Jacob, “Give me children, or I’ll die!””
‭‭Genesis‬ ‭30‬:‭1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Let’s face it. Today’s reading is messed up.

First, Jacob meets Rachel and basically says, “Hi. I’m your cousin. Let’s get married.”

Then Rachel’s dad delivers Leah instead of Rachel. And Joseph doesn’t notice until morning?

Then Joseph ends up with two wives. Jealousy ensues which brings us to today’s verse.

Rachel’s jealousy leads her to make poor decisions. Mainly, she tells him to have a baby with her slave (I know it says servant but someone who can be forced to have a child with your boss’s husband is a slave).

The jealousy in that family runs rampant leading to Leah forcing her slave to have a child by Jacob and culminating in the jealous grown brothers of Joseph selling him into slavery.

Like I said, messed up reading today.

But, it warns us of the dangers of jealousy.

Have you been known to make poor decisions when you struggle with jealousy?
How can you keep a level head when people around you get all the breaks?

Tag: jealousy

This seems like an odd line for a song.

By the end of the Psalm, we hear how God protected him.

We would do well to take David’s advice and step back, maintain our integrity, and let God take care of it.

That’s why he wrote this Psalm to remind himself and us that God has it under control.

Too often, we think of faith as simply believing.

In reality, true faith is about trust.

If we trust that Jesus spoke the truth, we will do what He tells us to do.

It is said that the LORD is a jealous God.

Even when He disciplines His children, He loves and protects them.

If you trust in God for forgiveness and new life, you are His child!

Neither was Absalom.

Truly harsh!

Stay tuned for more of the story in coming weeks.

Apparently, Baruch was having a pity party.

Pity parties are uniquely selfish.

Just another blessing he could have been counting.

I love how honest the Bible is.

In David’s case, he outlasted the persecution with integrity

But we humans can be excessive.

We wallow in jealousy or self pity.We ignore our family and spiritual life in pursuit of wealth.We spend money we don’t have on things we don’t need.

GodFamilyCommunity and Country

I have all I need.

Let’s face it. Today’s reading is messed up.

But, it warns us of the dangers of jealousy.

We wallow in jealousy or self pity.
We ignore our family and spiritual life in pursuit of wealth.
We spend money we don’t have on things we don’t need.

God
Family
Community and Country