TO CHEW ON: "Saul was very angry; this refrain displeased him greatly. 'They have credited David with tens of thousands,' he thought, 'but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?' And from that time on Saul kept a jealous eye on David." 1 Samuel 18: 8.9
David’s victory over Goliath sparked a big celebration. All the women in towns along the road from the battlefield to the palace came out to cheer. They had tambourines and lutes and sang a song:
“Saul has slain his thousand
and David his ten thousands.”
and David his ten thousands.”
When Saul heard this, he grew very jealous. They were praising David more than him. Next they’d want to crown David king.
Because David was now a famous warrior, Saul invited him to stay at the palace. David had actually been at the palace before, to play the harp for Saul. He did this to calm Saul when an evil spirit bothered him.
The day after they got back, the evil spirit came to Saul again and he asked David to play his calming music. This time, though, Saul’s jealousy was too strong. As David was playing, Saul took up a spear and threw it at David, trying to kill him. Just in time, David got out of the way. But from then on, jealous Saul couldn’t get the thought of killing David out of his head.
PRAYER: Dear God, please show me any jealous feelings in my heart and help me to deal with them. Amen.
MORE: Five ways to fight the Jealousy Monster
Have you ever been in a situation like this?
- The teacher pays special attention to other kids in class but ignores you.
- The new kid in your school has stolen your best friend.
- You have trouble liking the person who beat you out in baseball tryouts.
Are you tempted to respond with jealousy?
(Jealousy = when you resent or hate someone who is getting what you think you deserve, what you would like to have, or what you once had and lost.)
Here are five ways to fight the Jealousy Monster:
1. Admit that your jealousy is sin (Galatians 5:19-21).
2. Ask God for forgiveness (1 John 1:9).
3. Ask God for wisdom to know how to deal with your jealous feelings (James 1:5).
4. Accept yourself as God made you (Romans 12:3-8).
5. Accept the things that are happening in your life – even the ones that make you feel jealous – as allowed by God (Romans 8:28). He works even through difficult things to make you into the person He can use. Be teachable.
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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Adult readers - DAILY DEVOTIONS FOR ADULTS are available too at Other Food: daily devo's.
1 comment:
I've been interested in teaching a Bible lesson about envy for a while now, but I wasn't sure exactly where to start…so you can imagine how relieved and pleased I was to find this blog post! You've put together the perfect combination of scripture and lesson to make for an interesting and impactful lesson. Thanks so much for sharing!
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