What is Fair?
As a mother of four small children, I hear “that’s not fair” very often. As a woman approaching the big 40, I have learned “fair” is not a real thing.
My earliest feelings of being on an uneven playing field came when I was younger and as one of six children I took notice of siblings getting a better birthday party, friends who had bigger houses or more one on one time with their parents, even someone eating the last cookie or piece of cake. As I got older I saw friends whose parents were going through divorce, illnesses, and even death.
Why do some people have a big bad thing happen and others seem to not?
Why is suffering so unevenly dispersed in this world?
Why does a mom lose her baby?
Why does a young family lose a parent?
Why do some people have so many children and others cannot?
Why is it that mental illness so prevalent?
Why can some people worry about saving for retirement and others worry about keeping food in their refrigerator?
Why does following the rules or obeying God’s commandments in life feel so lonely?
I really could go on and on and on because sometimes the world is just one big neon sign for things being unfair.
So, how does a person stay sane and unpack the why?
My best thought on this is that God chose his only Son to be humiliated and crucified in payment for our sins. The weight of sin was given to Christ in our stead. What could be more unfair than this?
Comparison is the thief of earthly joy… but we can find truer joy in our crosses when we bind them to Christ on the cross and walk with him, eyes straight ahead.
Christ paid our fare–there is no other fair.
