My younger daughter came to report her brother to me recently with these words; “Daddy, Daniel has taken so many cans of milk in this house within these few weeks.” I gently and humorously responded; “How many cups of rice have you eaten around the same period?” She just smiled and walked away. But that simple father-daughter conversation ministered to me. Learn to focus on your own blessings.
Friend, learn to focus on your own blessings. Most times, we focus on what God is doing in other people’s lives while neglecting ours (SoS 1:6). This is one reason for ingratitude and envy; a loss of focus on God’s faithfulness to you. Why focus on someone else’s progress when you should focus on yours? What you focus on magnifies (Psalms 27:13).
Perhaps the reason God keeps blessing your neighbour and seems not to bless you is because you keep looking at your neighbour’s blessings (Psalms 73:1-3). If Hannah had not stopped focusing on Peninah, her Samuel would never have shown up (1 Samuel 1:6-8). What about you? Are you expecting a miracle from God while you keep focusing on other people’s blessings?
Progress requires focus. But it has to be a focus on the right things (2 Corinthians 4:18). It has to be a focus on what you have and not what you lack. It has to be a focus on what is happening and not what is not happening. It has to be a focus on what God is doing and not what the enemy is doing. What have you focused on this year? Is it on God’s faithfulness or the devil’s wickedness (Lamentations 3:22)? The former will produce gratitude while the latter would bring depression.
God is more faithful to you than you think. You might have lost something, but God is the reason you have not lost everything (1 Thessalonians 5:18). Sometimes, the people you are focusing on thinking they have everything going perfect for them may be battling worse situations than you. They have only learned to manage their issues better than you. There’s more to life than meets the eye.
On a flipside, why are you monitoring another person’s feed when you serve the El-Shaddai God (Ephesians 3:20)? As my son was finishing different cans of baby food, my daughter did not go hungry. God’s blessing to your neighbour does not stop yours. We all have access to God’s unlimited resources (Romans 10:12). But are you making the right demands on Heaven’s resources? Are you enjoying the Fathehood of God without feeling guilty or uncared for? In God, all things are yours (1 Corinthians 3:21). Did you get it?
‘Demola Awoyele
Lead Pastor,
Destiny Impact Church
Akure, Nigeria