Envy is an emotion with roots in covetousness. You want what someone else has and feel upset that they have it and you don’t. In difficult relationships, envy often grows out of pain. You are struggling with the weight of your problems, and when you see someone who has a relationship that you desperately desire, you are envious of them. Envy is understandable in situations such as those, but you must manage it properly or it can consume you.

Here are some signs that may indicate you are envious of someone:

• You have difficulty being happy about their success and circumstances.
• ou experience joy at their misfortune.
• You find yourself talking negatively about them behind their back.
• You put them down in your mind and wonder why they deserve what they have.
• You compare them to yourself and decide that you deserve at least as much or more than they have.
• You are overwhelmed with discontentment when you are around them or hear about them.

Here is what you need to do to get over envy:

• Choose to be happy for the person you are envious of.
• Stop comparing your circumstances to theirs.
• Thank God for your circumstances and find something good about them.
• Work on acceptance of your life by grieving your losses and disappointments.
• Take proactive action in the areas you can.

Envy does not have to rule your emotions. You can choose to do things to control it so it does not cause problems in your life and relationships.

By Karla Downing
 

Relationship Devotional Prayer

 
God,

Help me to accept the lot in life that you have allowed. Help me to be able to truly rejoice with others when things go well for them and to grieve with them when they do not.
 

Relationship Devotional Challenge

• Who are you envious of?
• What can you do to get over your envy?

Scripture Meditation

 
Romans 12:15

“Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn” (NIV).

James 4:1-2

“What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight” (NIV).