Paul's letter to Titus while Titus served the Church in Crete presents to Titus the qualities of leadership -- qualities and not gifts. Although this message is similar to Paul's message to Timothy it is still different enough to warrant discussion and contemplation here. Of particular interest to this devotional is Titus 3:3 shown to the left in bold type (the whole passage of verses 1-7 show the context) in which Paul indicates that he and Titus were once with envy and the implication of the verse is that envy, along with other undesirable qualities should not be encouraged in the church at Crete. The focus of this devotional is the introspective look into what drives us to do what we do. 

The old-adage of seeing a glass as either half-full or half-empty is directed at determining if one sees life as an optimist or as a pessimist but the example ignores a third option -- that of sufficiency. When is striving for more OK and when is it not OK? To examine this it is necessary to first examine your motives as to why you want more. Is it to exceed what your neighbor has? To be the 'envy' of others? Did this begin by 'envying' others first? St. Basil's message (on the left of this page) points out that those who strive from a sense of envy will never be free of trouble -- so why strive? Striving as a means of being a steward of resources given to us, whether these resources are people or material, leads to a sense of satisfaction since the steward does not seek a reward or personal gain but rather seeks to benefit the master or owner. Agency theory developed as a result of leaders and managers acting in their own behalf rather than acting as stewards, thus the presence for forced accountability measures imposed on leaders from outside constituents. 

But what of the entrepreneur who is his/her own agent and steward in one person? The entrepreneur has to decide if he/she wants growth because growth is needed or if growth is sought as means of increasing the size of his/her personal holdings in order to gain status and exceed the wealth of his/her neighbor.  The entrepreneur is harder to evaluate since entrepreneurs, many times, do not have outside constituents to report to, thus accountability measures may not be obvious. The entrepreneur needs to check his/her motives to determine the reason for the behaviors. 

The danger of envy is that it causes leaders -- whether an entrepreneur or not -- to focus on self rather than others -- customers, employees, family, and most importantly God. Saul envied David and focused on himself to his own demise. David envied Uriah and coveted Uriah's wife Bathsheba that ended in Uriah's death, David's public disclosure through Nathan, and eventually the fall of David, his children, and all of David's kingdom. Envy rarely is fulfilled since there is usually someone somewhere who has more than you do and once you exceed another you find still more people who have more. 

The next time you see a glass partially filled consider if you see it as half-full, half-empty, or sufficient. 

Example of the devotional

John was in his 40's and was moving along the ladder of success. He had married a beautiful woman and had two children who both were doing well in school. John had a large house in a prestigious neighborhood. He and his wife both drove luxury cars and the family enjoyed fabulous vacations each year. But John was troubled. He was deeply in debt and was beginning to have trouble paying his bills on time. John was obviously living far beyond his means as he sought to have the things and prestige that others had. John always saw the glass as insufficient and wanted more. He was driven at work to perform better than anyone else and his peers avoided working on projects with him since he always seemed to look out for himself and blamed everyone else for any problems that occurred with the high profile projects. 

John's wife was concerned about John and noticed that every time that John bought something new or got a promotion or another bonus at work that he was only happy for a short period of time. She noticed that he was becoming more withdrawn from the family and more demanding of her and the two children. It seemed that nothing that she or the children did was good enough and he was constantly pushing the three of them to engage in public performances or contests. 

John's debt caught up with him and he had to file for bankruptcy that resulted in public disclosure of John's financial condition. He was embarrassed and quit his job as result. John's behavior did not change though. Although the family lost their prestigious house and were now living in an apartment, John became angry and sullen every time he saw a neighbor with a new car or other item. John's wife eventually reached the end of her tolerance and moved out taking the children with her and offered to return only upon John seeking and actively involving himself in therapy for his obsessive compulsive behavior.

Application of the devotional

Envy is not ambition but rather a form of greed that drives people to perform in ways that do not bless God or demonstrate that they are loving their neighbor as themselves. Ambition that moves the steward to see what he/she can do to better serve his/her master and bless others in the process is the better choice.

Practical exercise related to the devotional

Be attuned to your attitude when you see that others have more than you do whether it is in material things, personal skills, or job achievements. If you notice that you feel intense emotional reactions to the announcements of others' success or when you see your neighbor drive home in a new car -- make note of the emotion and spend time in honest self-reflection asking God to help show you the basis of your heart. If you don't, there may well be a Nathan in your future..