When my children were little, often they’d come screaming to me, that’s not fair, whenever they had a conflict with a teacher, sibling or friend. My first answer without fail was always Life’s not fair. Why did I say that? Because life isn’t fair and I didn’t want to raise my children with a sense of entitlement. Life doesn’t owe us anything. It’s a gift — a precious gift from God. None of us had one thing to do with bringing our existence into this world.
Even thought we are all created equal in that we are all human, we are not all created the same. God created each of us differently with our own set of gifts, talents, physical characteristics, intelligence, athletic ability, strengths and weaknesses. There has never been nor will there ever be any other person on earth exactly like you or I, unless, of course, you have an identical twin and even then their personalities are unique.
No two people are the same in their upbringing either. Our families are different. We are exposed to different environments and are offered different opportunities. Likewise, we all face different challenges. No matter how privileged we are, we will face trouble in this life. No one gets a pass. Jesus promised it. (John 16:33)
Recently, the world watched in horror as a man was slowly and deliberately killed by a police officer. It was a senseless act of violence that never should have happened. Unfair is an understatement. George Floyd should have been given his day in court for his accused crime instead of an immediate death sentence. That’s the way our system of justice works.
We then watched in horror again as angry mobs burned businesses, looted stores and mercilessly beat innocent people to the death. Instead of just the perpetrator paying for his crime, at least seventeen innocent people had to pay with their life and hundreds of others had to pay with the loss of their business or property to the tune of millions of dollars. Again, totally unfair and most unfortunate.
What’s even more shocking was to listen to a major news commentators actually condone these acts of terror as “Sometimes necessary in order for change to happen.”
Seriously? Is this the way we now handle our grievances in America? Pro-life advocates have been marching on Washington for over 40 years for laws to be enacted to stop the killing of our unborn sons and daughters. Are they supposed to start burning down abortion clinics now and murdering people in order to bring attention to the matter and get the results they want?
Of course not. The Bible instructs us not to return evil for evil. (Romans 12:17) Jesus never did. He went so far as to pray for the forgiveness of those who were nailing him to a cross.
One thing that is equal in each of us, however, is our free will. God will never impose His will on us. It’s a part of being human. We’ve all been give control over our attitudes and our actions. It’s how we choose those attitudes and actions that makes the most difference in our life.
God hasn’t invited us into a disorderly, unkempt life but into something holy and beautiful – as beautiful on the inside as the outside. – 1 Thessalonians 4:7 – The Message
Duking Out Life 