This past Friday night, our high school football team’s season ended like it has ended over the last several years, with a defeat. When you lose a game during the playoffs, your season is finished. It has been the pattern over the years the opponent who hands us the loss during the playoffs are usually high schools that are considered “private.” Meaning, these schools have more latitude in terms of who they admit to their respective schools, how the admission process is handled (tuition, application requirements, etc.), and these schools are allowed to recruit kids. Hence, our opponent plays by different rules than us. The organization that sanctions high school sports have approved such practices. As I watched the clock tick down to zero, I saw the dirty uniforms of our kids and I saw some of our players with tears rolling down their cheeks. As a parent of one of those kids, I know the hours that have been invested to get to this point of the season. As we grabbed a few pictures, our boys made their way to the locker room. While the event I witnessed is a super small part of life, I asked myself, “Is life fair?”
How many times have we been handed news that someone we love will have to deal with treatment due to a disease? How many times have we seen a family member have to deal with a life-long physical, emotional, or mental challenge that limits the ability to enjoy life? How many times have we been mistreated by someone we thought we could trust? As Christians we must remember: God sends sun/rain on the just and unjust (Matthew 5:45), Christians are not immune to suffering (II Timothy 3:12), Christians can grow during trials (James 1:2-4). When we deal with problems may we have perspective and allow our trials to fuel us to a greater relationship with Christ. Many things are out of our control but how we respond isn’t. Life is not a game but is filled with challenges we don’t always understand. May we grow and not give up.
