Have you ever seen what God is doing in somebody else's life and wished He would do the same in your own? I have. I can't even count the amount of times I have seen God bless a friend with something wonderful but instead of praising God for blessing my friend I end up battling thoughts of envy, jealously, and discontentment. If we're being honest with ourselves – we've all been there. We've all looked at what somebody else has with envy. Whether we are envious of their wardrobe, their nice car, their relationship, their beautiful wedding, their well-behaved children, or their career. We have all experienced envy.
In Matthew 20:1-16 we come across a simple parable called “Laborers in the Vineyard.”
[I'd highly encourage you to get our your Bible and read this parable for yourself. It's always wise to get into the word of God on your own and not take what someone says about scripture as truth. Be discerning!]
The parable begins by telling us that the landowner is a metaphor for the kingdom of heaven. A landowner goes out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard. They agreed to be paid a denarius for a day's work. They went to work in the vineyard. A few hours later the landowner went out and hired more men to work in His vineyard, telling them, “I will pay you whatever is right.” He did the same thing later on in the day with another group of workers. At the end of the day the landowner said, “Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.” The workers who were hired last and had only worked for an hour each received a denarius. Seeing this, the workers who came first expected to receive more. When they too each received a denarius they began to complain saying, “These men were hired last and only worked one hour! Why should they be paid the same amount that we have been paid? We spent the entire day working in the hot sun!” The landowner replied, “Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn't you agree to work for a denarius? Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you. Don't I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous? So the first will be last and the last will be first.”
When I first read this parable I could feel the anger that the workers who had spent all day working in the hot sun felt. I would have been angry too! I worked an entire shift and someone else came along and worked just one hour and we got paid the same? That feels unfair, doesn't it? But what we need to remember, and what the landowner reminds the workers of is this – You agreed to work for a denarius. That was fair. The landowner made you an offer and you accepted it. If you had worked the whole day and the landowner hadn't hired anyone else later on, you likely would have finished your shift feeling content with what you had earned for your work. The only reason you'd feel discontented is if you were comparing what you received to what someone else received. The same lessons applies to our lives today.
It's incredibly easy to look at what God has given someone else and question why He hasn't given us the same thing. We wonder why someone who has been in many relationships and has never had to go through a prolonged lonely season of singleness is being blessed with a healthy and Christ-centered relationship when we have been sitting around, praying and waiting for God to bring us a healthy, Christ-centered relationship. “Why should she get one and I don't?” “I've waited longer than she has.” “I'm lonelier than she is.” “I want it more than she does.” We compare, we become envious, we obsess, we want, and we become discontented.
"We compare, we become envious, we obsess, we want, and we become discontented."
Now let me ask you – imagine you are a parent of two children. Two children who have different personalities, different strengths and weaknesses, different desires, etc. You know and pay attention to your children because you love them. You want to give your children good things because you love them. You want them to be content because you love them. Does this mean that you will do the exact same things for each child? Of course not. Each child is unique. What will be helpful and received as a blessing to one child might not produce the same response in another. For example, one child might be ready to receive the blessing of getting his/her very own bedroom because through their actions and the posture of their heart – they have shown their parent they are ready not only for the blessing but the responsibilities that go along with that blessing. They have shown their parent that they will receive the blessing with joy and thanksgiving but that their joy and thanskgiving isn't dependent upon the blessing. Do you see where I'm going with this?
Now again, imagine you are a parent – your child really wants his/her own bedroom. Your child asks every single day for his/her own bedroom. But when you observe your child you see that any other gift you give him/her is received with mediocre thanks, if any. You observe that your child's current bedroom that they share with their sibling is a disaster – there are clothes everywhere, toys littering the floor, the bed is unmade, the garbage is overflowing, and the dresser drawers are all open and the clothes unfolded. Would you look at this child and say, “You know what, because you keep asking me, I'm going to give you your own room.” or would you look at this child and say, “If you want something more than this – you need to show me that you can take care of and be thankful for what you already have.”
Think about the thing you want the most. How much of your daily life is spent thinking about this thing? Working toward this thing? Obsessing over this thing? Being envious of others who already have this thing? Chances are the answer is A LOT. Getting caught up in our desires is easy. Being content and thankful for what God has already given doesn't always come as naturally. Chances are, God already has that blessing that you've been praying for stored up in heaven with your name on it. But are you showing Him that you're ready for it? Is your heart saying,
“Lord, thank you for all that you have given me. Thank you for my home, for my job, the food on my plate, the people in my life, and for the way you meet my every need. I pray that your will would be done in my life and not my own. I pray that you would help me to be content and thankful for all that you have given me. I pray that you would help me to be a good steward of the things that you have already blessed me with, even if they look different from the blessings I had in mind.”
"Chances are, God already has that blessing that you've been praying for stored up in heaven with your name on it. But are you showing Him that you're ready for it?"
In Matthew 7:11 Jesus tells us, “If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!” If we, mere humans who are tainted by the fallen world and are prone to sin, know how to give good gifts to our children that we love, how much more does God know how to give us good gifts? He loves us more than we could ever imagine or even comprehend. He knows not only what gifts are good for us but the right timing for us to receive those gifts. Do you think God would waste a blessing on someone He knows isn't prepared to handle the responsibilities that the gift entails? Of course not. God doesn't make mistakes. He knows your heart better than you know yourself. He see's not just our outward actions but the intentions behind our actions. He may hear your words of thanksgiving and praise but if you heart doesn't match the words you're speaking, He isn't fooled.
Jeremiah 17:10 tells us, “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.” God sees beyond the words we speak and our outward reaction to not getting what we want – He cares much more about the posture of our hearts than about the facade we put on for the world. God promises to satisfy our every need not our every greed. The thing is – God not only loves us but He wants to be loved by us. He deserves to be loved by us. He deserves our praise. He deserves our thanksgiving no matter what our circumstances might be. Do you think God (who is inherently good and perfect and incapable of making mistakes) would see that whatever it is that you're longing for is greater than your desire for Him and choose to give it to you? Of course not.
"God promises to satisfy our every need not our every greed."
The greatest command, yes command, not suggestion, that God gives us is this, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” - Mark 12:30. The Bible also gives us beautifully profound advice in Matthew 6:19-21 which says, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy and thieves do not break in and steal. For where you treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
When our desire for things created becomes stronger than our desire for the Creator we will find ourselves stuck in a posture of discontentment. We will find ourselves miserable. If we place all our hope for a happy life in the things that God can give us we set ourselves up for disaster. Anything that God gives us can be taken away, can be stolen, broken, or lost. God gives us good gifts and blessings all the time but we don't always get to keep them. Here's the thing – the only way to be content and satisfied is to desire the Lord above all else. If you truly seek The Lord and know Him you will be satisfied. This doesn't mean you won't desire for anything else – this simply means that your contentment isn't dependent upon the things that God can give you but upon God himself.
"When our desire for things created becomes stronger than our desire for the Creator we will find ourselves stuck in a posture of discontentment. We will find ourselves miserable."
God has already given you all that you need! The rest is simply our fleshly desires. Don't get me wrong – desiring a blessing from God isn't wrong, in fact, He encourages us to ask for the things that we desire. But we must be sure that our desire for God is greater than our desire for the things He can give us.
“His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world causes by evil desires.”
- 1 Peter 1:3-4
Reflection...
Think of a time that you felt envious of a blessing God had given to someone else. Did your outward response match your inner response?
Have you ever allowed your envy over something that somebody else had to cause a divide in your relationship with them?
Have you ever outwardly thanked and praised God while inwardly complaining and grumbling?
Action...
Take some time to dig into the word of God. When we truly know God and understand who he is – we will find contentment. Not all at once. Not contentment that will last forever from reading one scripture in a moment. But contentment through knowing and continually reminding ourselves of who God is and understanding what it is that God asks of us.
Here are some scriptures I would recommend meditating on, praying over, and asking God for clarity on:
And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. - Philippians 4:19
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. - Hebrews 13:8
Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. - 1 John 4:8
"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." - Jeremiah 29:11
The Lord appeared to us in the past saying, "I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness." - Jeremiah 31: 3
But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness. - Psalm 86:15But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. - Romans 5:8
The Lord your God is with you, the Might Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing. - Zepheniah 3:17
Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. - 1 Peter 5:6-7
I know what it is to be in need and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength. - Philippians 4:12-13
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has never said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." - Hebrews 13:5
If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. - Matthew 6:30-33
Prayer...
Lord, we come before you with thanksgiving. Thank you Lord for all the gifts you have already given us, even the ones that require work and responsibility. Thank you for the gifts that we have grown weary of. Thank you for all the gifts that are to come. Thank you Lord for the way that you love us. Thank you Lord for loving me unconditionally even when I don't deserve it. Help me to make you my focus and my ultimate desire above all else. Show me the things that I have made idols before you, Lord. Show me the things that are holding me back from living in contentment. Guide me, teach me, and show me in your word of your character and of your love for me. Help me to live fully satisfied in you.
In Jesus' name, Amen.
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