Thursday, July 17, 2003
Thursday, July 17, 2003
For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various
passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, despicable, hating one another.
But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not
because of any works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy, through
the water of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.
What happens, even to bright successful people, to cause them to hurt their own career rather
than share the glory with someone else? We call it pride, envy, ego.
Envy springs from a basic insecurity about our own self worth. As Elizabeth O'Conner has
rightly noted, whenever a person is envious of another, you can be sure that individual has never
fully recognized and accepted his or her own gifts.
(Titus 3.3-5
NRSV)
When Henry Ford started his car company in 1903 he took a business partner, James Couzens.
Couzens was strong where Ford was weakest--administration, finance, sales, etc. Couzens
contributed as much to the success of the Ford motor company as did Ford. Many of the best
known policies and practices of the Ford Motor company for which Henry Ford is often given
credit were Couzen's ideas. So effective did Couzens become that Ford grew increasingly
jealous of him and forced him out in 1917 in an argument over the future of the Model T.
Couzens said the car was obsolete and that they should move on to other things. Ford
disagreed, got rid of Couzens, and kept making Model Ts until he had nearly run his car
company into the ground.
Dear God, help me to move aside my envy and focus on the great gifts you have blessed me
with. Amen.
