‘Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good’ (1Pet 3:1-3)

My husband and I we are on a vacation with a group of brethren. Yesterday we discussed the matter of envy. This morning, I used the topic of envy as a Bible study for myself. I share some of my thoughts with you…

One of the troubles a successful person encounters in life is the envy of others. Envy is defined as an angry, bitter feeling rising against a successful person combined with a strong desire to have what that successful person has (money, social status, happy marriage). Spiritually speaking, envy is a work of the flesh produced under the influence of evil spirits. The Holy Spirit never produces envy!!! Envy is like a spiritual virus. We are commanded to kill it, to get rid of it, to uproot it. God will give you the power to do it but He will not do it it for you! You have to get rid of it by yourself! This is God’s command! If you allow envy to grow in your heart it will destroy every little joy and peace you ever had. Envy kills the spiritual appetite for the Word of God. Envy hinders spiritual growth. No matter how long you call yourself a Christian and you attend a church, envy will keep you in bondage and you cannot be spiritually fruitful. You must get rid of it!

This is my testimony: I am a very happy woman. With the help of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God I identified envy as my personal enemy. For a long time I did not know that envy exists in my heart. If you asked me: ‘are you envious of other people?’ – I will say: ‘of course not!’. Envy works thru deception. Envy is a liar! I decided to prayerfully study my heart. One day I discovered something strange: each time I hear that somebody gained something that I desired or prayed for, I will become angry in my heart with that person. I also will be angry with God for making the ‘mistake’, by giving another the answer to ‘my prayers’. This angry feeling of envy was very strong and spoiled my peace. I could not control it on my own. I was ashamed of it and tried to hide it. It was not easy but at least I identified it in my heart! That was a good thing and the beginning of my deliverance!

One day, tired to be tormented by this wicked demon of envy, I decided to obey God’s command. I prayed for the strength to confront and uproot envy from my heart. I prayed for the Holy Spirit to help me to be grateful for what God has given me while waiting and praying for more blessings, without being envious on others. Like a cat waiting for the rat hiding in that hole to come out, I waited for envy to manifest once more. It surely did. Immediately I sensed the envy ‘coming out and talking the old wicked talk’ I got it by its neck, drew it out from its hiding and threw it into the fire of the Holy Ghost. This is how I got rid of this my old fleshly enemy! I then asked the Holy Spirit to fill me in that particular space envy was formerly occupying. He graciously did. I became free and free indeed! I now continue to preserve my freedom thru a sanctified life empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Dear friend, I pray for you this morning. The truth is that my life is very good. I am happy with what God has done and is doing in my heart, in my marriage and in my family. My life should be an inspiration and a holy challenge to you, not a source of envying. You can be free from envying too! Pray for freedom and contentment. Have a grateful and wise heart! Give thanks to God for what you have today, waiting in faith for what He will do tomorrow. From my vacation in The U.S. I greet you all!

(I wait for you to share with me your encounter and deliverance with the demon of envy)