How to Keep Criticism in Check by Steven Furtick

Pharaoh said to Joseph, “I hereby put you in charge of the whole land of Egypt.” Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his finger and put it on Joseph’s finger. He dressed him in robes of fine linen and put a gold chain around his neck. He had him ride in a chariot as his second-in-command, and people shouted before him, “Make way!” 
Genesis 41:41-43
If you saw Joseph in his prime, you’d probably think, “Oh, that must be nice.” Or negatively, “He’s sold God out, and all he cares about now is power and money.”

Really? Here’s the backstory:
Betrayed by his brothers and thrown into a pit. Then sold into slavery. Then falsely accused of rape by his master’s wife. Then thrown into prison. All this over the course of thirteen hellish years. And the Bible says that through it all, God was positioning him to save a nation and his family.
Jealous now?
Critical now?
We’ve got to be very careful about being jealous over other people’s blessings without knowing the backstory. It can be so easy to look at someone who’s in a good position or a church that’s really successful and be envious of what God has given them. Or be critical of it.
But you don’t know the road that person had to take to get to where they are today. You don’t know the price they’ve had to pay to get their church to where it’s at today.
They might have had to go through hell. Just like Joseph did. And they might have been faithful through it all. Just like Joseph was.
Would you still want their blessing if you knew the backstory? Would you be willing to go through the same thing to get it? Would you be as critical if you knew the whole story?
God’s blessings were never meant to trigger envy or suspicion.
Don’t waste any more time being jealous of someone else’s blessings. God has given you exactly what you need to do exactly what He’s called you to do.
And don’t be critical of other people’s blessings either. God’s given them exactly what they need, too.
Don’t envy where God has taken other people. Stop lamenting the hand He’s dealt you. It’s better than you think.
So good, in fact, that there’s someone else in the world that would probably be jealous of it.

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Steven Furtick is the Lead Pastor of Elevation Church, an incredible move of God in Charlotte, NC with more than 6,000 in attendance each week among three locations. He is the author of the forthcoming book, Sun Stand Still. He lives in Charlotte with his wife Holly and their two sons, Elijah and Graham.More from Steven Furtick or visit Steven at www.stevenfurtick.com