No More Jealousy Allowed!

 

Jealousy is easily one of the leading gateways to sin that  us women can fall into. From the constant pressures we adopt from a society that drowns in spirits of comparison and competition, we find ourselves constantly pitted against one another. We see images of what a "Beautiful Woman" should look like on social media, music videos, skincare commericials, and even the mannequin-like models we see at the clothing stores, etc. These images root themselves in the deepest pits of our minds and destroy our self-confidence. And unfortunately, these images are often-times male inflicted and perpetuated by women who either don't love themselves our have access to power (YES, I SAID WHAT I SAID).

We, then, find ourselves envying other women for having body features we desire, men we think we want to be with (When really, we know we don't need that type of Wahala in our lives), and possessing material things we desire access to. 

And okay, let me insert here, that jealosy is a very human thing. It's not necessarily a bad thing! Jelousy can simply defined as "viligance in maintaing or guarding something" (see full defintions here). You can be jealous of others for finding their purposes earlier than yours or you can even be jealous over someone you love. But jealousy is more than often a gateway to sin. Think about it, when we beocme jealous of someone for having something we desire, we do not necesarily wish good upon them because we want to take what is theirs! (And see there, you have become a thief... lol okay, extreme example, but you get the gist). When you become jealous of the individiual and not just the material possession itself that's when jealousy becomes dangerous and leads to sin. From there, you begin to feel uncomfortable by just the thought of the indiviudal and you start to think of them in a negative light. When really, we should look at everyone and their lives through a lense of love no matter their situation, who they are, and what they possess. 

In the bible, we see jealousy come up a numerous amount of times. Jealousy destroyed many relationships and brought pain into the world. For example, in the story Cain and Abel, Cain and Abel were asked by God to bring him the fruits of their work. Abel brought God the best of his lifestock, and Cain brought God one of his lifestock as his sacrifice, but it was not his best. God favored Abel's sacrifice. And it angered Cain, and he began to envy his brother. God said to Cain, "Why this tantrum? Why the sulking? If you do well, won't you be accepted? And if you don't do well, sin is lying in wait for you, ready to pounce; it's out to get you, you've got to master it." (Genesis 4:6-7 MSG). Cain, still boilig with jealousy, went ahead and  killed Abel. And God then cursed Cain.

The moral of the story here is that because of Cain's inability to control his jealousy, he hated  his own brother and ended up killing him, thus committing Cain into a life of sin. Again, to my fellow women: we have to be careful not to become like Cain and envy our own sisters. We are pushing ourselves away from God and disqualifying ourselves from our God-given destinies and blessings.

The story of Rachel and Leah, two sisters who were both wives of Jacob, highlights the type of jealousy that can be breaded between women based on the relationship they have with a mutal-male in their life.  The two sisters engage in a serious rivalry and dimiss any sense of sisterhood (see Genesis 29 for full story).

Personally, I have battled feelings of jealousy and sometimes struggle with. But, what has help me overcome jealousy is the open rebuking of the spirit of jealousy. In rebuking the spirit of jealousy, you can more clearly see that everyone is blesssed in their own way. And we should rejoice in that. Like imagine a world in which everyone had the same exact talents and lives? Kinda boring right?

Don't let jealousy led you to the sin of envy! Don't envy the lives of others! Love Yours!

'For the vision is yet for the appointed [future] time it hurries toward the goal [of fulfillment]; it will not fail. Even though it delays, wait[patiently] for it , Because it will certainly come; it will not delay.'
 -Habakkuk 2:3 AMP