Life's Not Fair

People get hurt. Tornadoes rip homes apart. War. Famine. Drunk drivers. CEO's get million dollar bonuses while workers get laid off. Women are battered. Children are abused. Bullies. Cancer. Buildings burn. Shootings. Robberies.

We all know that life is not fair. God does not promise that the road to heaven is paved with roses. ^{John 15:18-19} "If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you." John 16:³³ "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

But how do you explain that to a child? I have a child that sees the world as black and white. Right and wrong. If you do what is wrong you should be punished. But that does not always happen. Sometimes people that do bad things seem to be - almost rewarded - with popularity, skills, privileges. And it is not fair.

I wish there was a way to explain all the bad, without it hurting so much. But I can't do it. I just want to cry. Life seemed easier when I was young. Maybe the world wasn't as bad then, or maybe my parents just shielded me from it all. I wish I could wrap my arms around my kids, hold them close and protect them from all the evil in the world. But I can't. So, instead I will pray with everything I have that I can teach my children God's love and God's reward if we live like him. I pray it will be enough and that they can understand that we don't want to live life for the world's reward of popularity, fame or fortune. I pray that my children will live their life worthy, in an unfair world, to be a child of God.