I have seen my neighbor’s riches and desired the seemingly ‘greener’ grass on the other side. We all have. We have all, at one time or another, wanted desperately what another person had. Whether it’s a sleek sport’s car, a corner office, a sizable salary, or big house on the hill, we have seen it and wanted it. It’s a natural feeling. It’s also a dangerous feeling if it’s allowed to fester and grow.
You see, envy feeds discontent and discontent unravels peace. Discontent takes every good thing in your life and turns it into a ‘have not.’ Your nice warm home becomes too small. Your job that pays the bills becomes too stifling. Your spouse who loves you becomes too old. Everything that is normally a plus becomes a minus. You can’t enjoy the triumphs of others because you’re thinking, “Hey, what about my needs? Don’t I get to have a few wins too?”
One thing that I have found over the many years I have been in the business world is that envy is the worst emotion for personal and professional growth. When you stop celebrating others’ successes, you can’t work on your own. When you’re angry that others have more, you often find you have less.
You can experience so much more if you can applaud other people’s achievements. Not only does your inner circle of affiliations grow with others’ success, but you can also potentially find personal success by associating with and celebrating their success.
Not only that, you start to see the abundance in your own life. Being a child of God, you have more than enough. No matter where you live, how much money you have in the bank, what you drive, or how far you’ve climbed the corporate ladder, God is greater and ALWAYS willing to share his grace.
As Max Lucado wrote, “So what if someone was born thinner or stronger, lighter or darker than you? Why count diplomas or compare resumes? What does it matter if they have a place at the head table? You have a place at God’s table. And he is filling your cup to overflowing.”
