bad jealousy vs. good jealousy

So...Have you ever wondered why God has described Himself as a "jealous" God?


"Do not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God." -Exodus 34:14


Some dictionary definitions for jealous are as follows:


Jealous- Having to do with or arising from feelings of envy, apprehension, or bitterness.


Jealous-Vigilant in guarding something


Jealous-Intolerant of disloyalty or infidelity; autocratic: a jealous God.


So these can create quite a different meaning depending on the context. In context of our human nature it usually has the connotation of being a sin. We have the mind set of you have something that I want and I wish you harm for it....for an example, anyways. But for God is has a whole different context. I really like the 2nd definition of jealous best. "Vigilant in guarding something" makes the passage from Exodus so moving. God is "intolerant of disloyalty or infidelity". He will become vigilant in guarding your relationship with Him. How increadible is that?!?!?!!!!!!! God loves us so much that He will fight for our relationship with Him. In our sinful nature we can make "idols" out of things in our life; people, work, money, etc. But God will fight vigilantly for us....do you know the exact meaning of the word vigilant? Here's my favorite definition: Vigilant-ever awake and alert; sleeplessly watchful. God is always alert to when our sinful nature tries to pry us away from our relationship with Him...this is a righteous jealousy! Notice that there is not a drop of evil in this kind of jealousy, it is a pure desire and emotion. We should all strive to have this kind of "good jealousy" in our lives. In turn we should have the same kind of jealous attitude toward our Father. We should be vigilant in protecting and craving our relationship with Him.


"As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? " -Psalm 42:1-2


This should always be our attitude! I know that the more I discover about my Creator, the more time I want to spend with Him...We will never fully understand God while we are on this earth. We will be able to understand glimses of Him, but this should be all the more reason to search the scriptures to gain knowledge about Him. I hope you all have had a good day. Don't forget that even though the world is full of hardships and difficulties, know that the Lord your God is always with you. Talk to him about what is going on in your life. Tell Him your troubles and give thanks to Him for your blessings. Build that relationship with Him.


Prayer Requests_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


---So I would still like for you all to keep Elsa and her son in your prayers.


---Also my cousin's husband has to go over to Iraq again at the end of the week. This is his 4th deployment, so please keep him, my cousin and their children in your prayers as they prepare to do without him for another 10-11 months.


---I'd like to include an overall prayer for those individuals and families without jobs or income. This is a very rough time in our nation in terms of several things, but finance is a big one. Pray for those families that God would provide as He sees fit. Who knows, maybe you are apart of a way He will provide for them?