I don't want to admit to the number of times that I have thought, "how is it fair that he has that and all I have is this." No matter how well things might be going for me at the time, there will always be someone who seems to have more. "Seems" is the operative word here. Yes, there is a chance everything is good with the other person, but how many people do I know well enough to really know what their total situation is? Not many. That person with the nice house or the nice car may be struggling with their marriage, a relationship with their child or Cancer. To take this a step deeper into the dungeon, there have been times when I have hoped for something bad to happen to someone that is ahead of me. This is the most viscous form of jealousy. In John 21, Peter is walking with Jesus after his resurrection and Jesus asks Peter three times if he loves Him. Peter responds "yes" and is hoping for some confirmation from Jesus. Instead, Jesus instructs him to care for His sheep and lambs. And then Peter stepped into the trap - the comparison trap. He asked Jesus, "what about this man?", referring to John. Jesus replied, "... what is that to you?, you must follow me." Jesus makes it clear in his own words that we are not to be distracted by what blessings others might have, we are instructed to follow Him. I want to do this more.
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