Do you ever feel like life isn’t fair?
If I think back to when I heard that phrase most often, it usually came from the mouths of my children. Children are keen observers when it comes to fairness—especially with siblings. They want everything carefully measured when rewards are given, yet they hope for special grace when discipline is involved.
Most parents can relate.
“Mom, Johnny got thirteen Skittles and I only got twelve—that’s not fair!”
As Renee and I matured in our parenting, we came to an important realization: our children were not clones. We weren’t raising four identical people; we were raising four unique individuals—each with different personalities, strengths, and needs. Fairness, we learned, did not always mean sameness.
Some needed more discipline.
Some needed more encouragement.
Some required more help.
Some deserved greater reward because they had to work harder to meet expectations.
From the outside, that could look unfair. It wasn’t. We learned to be consistent in love while being flexible in application. Love stayed the same; our approach adjusted to how each child was wired.
I share that because many people feel the same way about God—they believe He isn’t fair.
Some see people living with abundance while others struggle to survive. Others watch good people suffer while those who commit great evil appear to escape consequences. It’s easy to understand why people who don’t know God deeply through His Word feel this way. These things do happen.
What many don’t understand—apart from Christ—is that there are spiritual forces at work beyond what we can see.
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12, NIV)
Evil does not originate with God. It originates with Satan and is fueled by sinful human choices. God cannot simply eliminate Satan and evil without also eliminating humanity, because all have sinned. God is not in the business of wiping people out. He loves His creation and desires that all come to repentance, receive forgiveness, and be given eternal life through Jesus Christ.
God’s love gives humanity free will. Though He continually works to draw hearts to Himself, many resist Him. As a result, we live in a fallen world where injustice touches everyone. Very little in life is fair—and recognizing that is important so disappointment does not turn into disillusionment with God.
God is not the problem.
Satan’s influence and humanity’s sinful choices are.
If you watch the news, you see that reality daily. But Scripture assures us that God will ultimately judge Satan and bring final justice.
Not only is God not unfair—He is merciful and full of grace.
God’s grace—His supernatural help—is given individually, perfectly suited to how He created each of us. His desire is not merely that we endure life, but that we succeed spiritually beyond what we could imagine. That grace is accessed by faith as we lean fully on Him.
“So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive His mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.” (Hebrews 4:16, NLT)
God is perfectly just. No one ultimately gets away with anything. Yet He extends greater mercy to the humble and repentant than to the proud.
“He does not punish us for all our sins; He does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.” (Psalm 103:10, NLT)
God keeps perfect records. He is the flawless Judge. Because of that, we are freed from carrying the burden of trying to make everything fair ourselves. Many situations are beyond our ability to fix—but none are beyond God.
Instead of being consumed by what feels unfair, we are invited to place those concerns at God’s feet and trust Him to do what is right.
God is just.
He knows exactly how to deal with each of us.
Leave it with Him and move forward. You have too much purpose to be distracted by what feels unfair. God gives supernatural peace when we trust that He sees, He knows, and He will bring justice in His perfect time.
“All day long I will proclaim Your saving power… I will tell everyone that You alone are just.” (Psalm 71:16, NLT)
