When Jesus calls, he calls us one by one. Comparisons are idle, speculations about others a waste of time, and envy as silly as it is evil. We are each called individually, accountable to God alone, to please him alone, and eventually to be approved by him alone. If ever we are tempted to look around, compare notes, and use the progress of others to judge the success of our own calling, we will hear what Peter heard: "What is that to you? Follow me!"

Os Guinness. The Call: Finding and Fulfilling the Central Purpose of Your Life (Kindle Locations 1487-1490). Kindle Edition.

Rather, envy-in Thomas Aquinas's famous definition-is "sorrow at another's good." Envy enters when, seeing someone else's happiness or success, we feel ourselves called into question. Then, out of the hurt of our wounded self-esteem, we seek to bring the other person down to our level by word or deed. They belittle us by their success, we feel; we should bring them down to their deserved level, envy helps us feel. Full-blown envy, in short, is dejection plus disparagement plus destruction.

Dorothy Sayers summed up envy succinctly. "Envy begins by asking plausibly: `Why should I not enjoy what others enjoy?' and it ends by demanding: `Why should others enjoy what I may not?"'

Os Guinness. The Call: Finding and Fulfilling the Central Purpose of Your Life (Kindle Locations 1453-1457). Kindle Edition.