Inspiration vs Envy
I’ve found that I am often inspired by the people and things I see on the internet. After watching a YouTube video on something, I will often want to try to match the talent of various ‘YouTubians”.
For example, after seeing Cupquake paint on her channel, I decided to go back and do some more digital art. Music covers by people such as Roomie have made me want to try my hand at making covers of my own (though I haven’t attempted one yet). Last but not least, all of the fantastic game commentators ( The Yogscast, Kevin, CaptainSparklez, etc.) have lead me to creating my own commentaries.
Okay, so there’s nothing wrong with being inspired, right? We’re all inspired by someone at some point. Inspiration helps make us who we are and help us to do what we do. However, we must be careful not to confuse inspiration with envy.
Do I want to make art, music, and commentaries just so I can be awesome like other people? This is a question that I often ask myself. However, I find that I genuinely enjoy doing the things I do. What’s the point in doing them otherwise?
So what’s the big deal? Why do I care so much about not being envious? Well, God tells us right in the tenth commandment, “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbour’s wife, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor” (Exodus 17). I believe that “anything” also include others’ talents and abilities. I shouldn’t want to be awesome just because someone else is awesome; I should want to be awesome because being awesome will benefit both me, God, and/or others.
Be careful not to mistake envy for inspiration.
