People who teach young children often hear them say the same things over and over. “It’s MY TURN!” “I’m telling on you…” And my favorite, “That’s not fair!”
Big people are, well, bigger than this of course. We’re too sophisticated to stoop to the “tit for tat” spats of childhood. Or are we?
Just four chapters into the Bible, we find someone who thought he was treated unfairly. And this “little boy” retaliated in the worst way imaginable. Cain killed his brother Abel because God favored Abel’s offering over his own. The Lord tried to intervene, but Cain wouldn’t listen.
Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at the door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.
Genesis 4:6-7
You mean I should take responsibility for my own thoughts and actions, Lord? I can CHOOSE how I respond to my feelings?
It’s time to put on my big boy pants.
“Fairness isn’t the key to happiness,” says Mitch Teemley in his recent post, Fairness is Overated. Why? “Because we never stop wanting things.” His accurate conclusion was this: while fairness in itself isn’t a bad thing, linking your personal happiness to it CAN be.
Mitch’s wise words came at just the right time. I was about to throw myself a Cain-sized pity party (minus the homicidal intentions) because something hadn’t gone my way.
Can you relate, kind reader? Maybe you have a “That’s not fair!” button too.
Don’t hit back; discover the beauty in everyone. If you’ve got it in you, get along with everybody. Don’t insist on getting even; that’s not for you to do. “I’ll do the judging,” says God. “I’ll take care of it.”
Romans 12:17-19 (MSG)
Photo by Randy Jacob on unsplash.com
Davids Daily Dose 
Leave a comment