Dear Trekker,
Life has never been fair! Ever since God deeded management of life to men, we’ve messed it up. Until we get our act together, life will not approach fairness. So we better get used to it… stop complaining about the obvious… and do something about it!
Have you ever wondered why God allows so much suffering, sorrow, crises and cataclysmic tragedy in His world? Well, for sure, it was by His choice! He knew before the foundation of the world, we would muck it up. Yet, he had made all the cherubim and seraphim and other angelic beings He desired, apparently. So he created man, not just another animal, but human beings with the power of choice. (Read the opening chapters of Genesis periodically trekker; it will enlighten and humble.) And He put us in charge! Genesis 1:28 is rather explicit: “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” If we are in charge, why don’t we do a better job about making life fair? We have the tools of knowing how life works, learning more every day; we can love and forgive, and give second chances to each other; we can be empowered to be dispensers of grace! God isn’t “running us” against our wishes. We choose to run our world… me, myself and I… often without God’s help. And then we complain, “Life isn’t fair.” As if it would be? We’ve proven inadequate to operate our world successfully the way it was designed to work. Woe is me is our lament… we won’t take responsibility, so surely God is to blame!
James 1:16-18 has caught my attention recently in preparation for a summer speaking engagement. “Don’t be deceived, my dear brother. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows (as we do). He chose to give us birth through the word of truth that we might choose to be a kind of first fruits of all he created” (Italics mine). Physical and spiritual life are both gifts from a loving God.
When we get caught up in the unfairness of life, we tend to jump to conclusions about life, self and God! Clearly, James is out to set the record straight. Jesus says we should take stock and slow down… be swift to hear and listen, slow to collect our thoughts and speak, and by all means keep our cool and our judgments in check. A Spirit-led life (and being a true steward of life is only possible via the Spirit of the creator and redeemer, God the Father) can bring about change in the middle of life crises. James declares boldly that if we direct our first response to God, “Why, God?”… we are thinking most inadequately.
Life is not fair… but God is more than fair. He gives second (and umpteen more) chances. God desires to give good gifts to His children that we might approach fairness in life… we can love, forgive, speak kindly and softly words of truth and encourage all to “fight the good fight” of making life not only fair, but preparatory for “life hereafter.” Indeed, “all things work together for good to them that love God (that’s you and me, trekker) and are called according to His purpose” (Romans 8:28).
Frankly, what we call unfair, God calls “opportunity” to reveal the true divine Father spirit of love and redemption. He desires only to bless, not curse or limit our expectations of happiness and joy. Of all the parables, the one of the landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard is one of my favorites. (Trekker, you’ll find it in Matthew 20:1-16. Read it now.) Some key thoughts to me: 1) Workers hired early in the morning agreed to the pay and conditions of work, i.e. “whatever is right, I will give you”, 2) Others were willing to work, but not hired till later in the day, 3) In the end, the landowner chose to reward all according to His desire to bless them all! May our sense of fairness never thwart God’s blessing for others.
Oh so often, we choose the outcomes granted. “Fair” (or not) becomes a state or frame of mind! What outcomes in life come our way should not be (usually) blamed on our parents, an employer, the government… or God. Life (what happens when we’ve made other plans) is largely based on the choices we make and the attitudes we adopt. Of course we should adopt the mind of Christ… in His humility and obedience, all things are possible.
Poverty can be overcome; ditto addiction, abuse and victimization (so rampant as a cultural malady today). Complaint against unfairness is always available for the asking, but we can choose a different, brighter path. We can choose to overcome odds and become over-comers, notably in Christ (Romans 8:37).
Challenges abound on the right and left. But hear me… attempting to regulate, legislate, litigate or adjudicate fairness will not ensure a “fair world” or solve the riddles of life. Mandates do not create fairness in the health fields or on spiritual turf. We are the problem; and adverse circumstances need not dictate outcomes for a people created to do good works (Ephesians 2:10).
From a leadership perspective, leaders (people like you and me) must do the right thing regardless of whether it is perceived as fair. If leaders attempt to navigate the slippery slope of fairness, they will get caught up in a political correctness maelstrom. “Fair” isn’t a standard to be imposed unless a leader is seeking to bring about mediocrity. Meritocracy is never “equally fair”… for all people are not rewarded equally.
This is why I love the parable in Matthew. God desires to bless us all, and has, but only by cutting through the vagaries of life that separate us from each other. We are equal before the law (in the USA), and equal before God; but not equal beside each other, in giftedness or gumption.
Thank God He has known our plight since before time and provided a remedy for our failures. “By grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from ourselves (our so-called efforts for fairness), it is the gift of God… Ephesians 2:8-9.
One of the most frustrating but necessary life lessons is to know that life is not fair, but God is more than fair. That is why His actions for us are called grace.
Seeking to be grateful in an unfair world,
Jim Meredith
