"Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s."
Exodus 20:17
We often think of coveting as wanting more than we have, and so it may be, but today as I was reading this I was thinking that it is also wanting something *different* than we have. Even if we have our own gifts and talents, sometimes we covet the gift or talent of someone else. Even if we are rich and surrounded with toys, sometimes we covet what someone else owns. Like a toddler, sometimes we want *that* toy just because someone else is playing with it.
I think it is often hard for us to be happy for other people, rather than resentful that the good thing didn't happen to us instead. The more we love people, the easier it is to be happy for them... and so maybe that is the solution to all of this. To learn to love more, and better, and to truly treat others as though they were us... we'd be happy for ourselves, right? :)
It's a tough thing to learn that we can't always get what we want, and that other people can. It feels unfair. With God though, we know that the things that are truly most important are always available to us, and monetarily free. It still takes time and effort to reach for what God offers, but it is never out of reach or reserved only for the privileged. We can all earn salvation. Today, let's focus on that most important of prizes, and let go of our jealousy and inordinate desire for other people's stuff. Let's learn to love others, and be happy for them... as we work to make the world a better place for all of us.
Exodus 20:17
We often think of coveting as wanting more than we have, and so it may be, but today as I was reading this I was thinking that it is also wanting something *different* than we have. Even if we have our own gifts and talents, sometimes we covet the gift or talent of someone else. Even if we are rich and surrounded with toys, sometimes we covet what someone else owns. Like a toddler, sometimes we want *that* toy just because someone else is playing with it.
I think it is often hard for us to be happy for other people, rather than resentful that the good thing didn't happen to us instead. The more we love people, the easier it is to be happy for them... and so maybe that is the solution to all of this. To learn to love more, and better, and to truly treat others as though they were us... we'd be happy for ourselves, right? :)
It's a tough thing to learn that we can't always get what we want, and that other people can. It feels unfair. With God though, we know that the things that are truly most important are always available to us, and monetarily free. It still takes time and effort to reach for what God offers, but it is never out of reach or reserved only for the privileged. We can all earn salvation. Today, let's focus on that most important of prizes, and let go of our jealousy and inordinate desire for other people's stuff. Let's learn to love others, and be happy for them... as we work to make the world a better place for all of us.
No comments:
Post a Comment