wicked, for the evildoer has no future
hope, and the lamp of the wicked
will be snuffed out.
(Proverbs 23:17–18; 24:19–20)
The antidote to envy. Envy stems
from two preoccupations. First, we
are obsessed with what we deserve.
Our hearts refuse to remember
grace and instead think only of
what we have earned. Second, we
are preoccupied with the present.
The solution is to look up to the Lord
(23:17b) and look ahead in hope
(23:18). That is, we should realize that
our true reward is based on God’s
grace. Also we should remember
that in the end, believers will not lack
anything (Psalm 17:15).
Christians have a way of “looking
up” that Proverbs could not
provide. Jesus did not complain
about experiencing death when
20 Solutions
he deserved l ife—all so we could
have life when we deserved death.
Jesus was the most unenvious human
being who ever lived. When you
realize what he did for you, it will
begin to erode your envy. If he didn’t
complain when he received a life
infinitely worse than he deserved, w
hy should we complain when all of
us get a life infinitely better than we
deserve?
Can you see how much less you
enjoy life because you think so much
about what you deserve? How can
you use the gospel—the example of
Jesus—to help you stop that?
Pray this prayer with me:
Lord, I confess I envy other people’s
bodies, bank accounts, relationships,
and many other things. I keep this
envy a secret, even from myself,
because it is so embarrassing. But it