Thursday, May 19, 2011

In Fairness

1 Kings 2:6-7
“Deal with him according to your wisdom, but do not let his gray head go down to the grave in peace. But show kindness to the sons of Barzillai of Gilead and let them be among those who eat at your table. They stood by me when I fled from your brother Absalom.”

Too often, what adults put aside, kids beautifully displays affront.  Little things that I take for granted, my little tots marvel at, laugh about, and thank God for. Just now, I gave a banana to Rilian and delightfully he exclaimed, ‘Ang sarap nito mom ah! Thank you Jesus!’. Or the other day, Kjaran showed me her shoes and said, ‘Mom, o, pretty’. I know it was God telling me to stop and praise. Not stop and complain. Because what normally grabs my attention, what makes me leave the computer table, is their loud scream or the mess they created. It takes effort and (their) prompting for me to mind their little achievements. Generous to scold, cautious with praise - - such imbalance :<

At his deathbed, David called in Solomon for his final charge. Given minimal time to delegate, he has to sift through his forty years reign and identify the most important. ‘Be strong’ was his first point. He opened his eyes to the reality of the task at hand. But instead of strategies and solutions, he armed him with strength. ‘Walk in His ways’ was next. He assured him of the promise and presence of God. David need not give details of how to run a kingdom for God’s law is suffice for faith and practice. Solomon just needs to faithfully abide. Third was about three people: Joab the backstabber, Shimei the curse-r, and Barzillai the old man.  David asked his son to mind his unfinished business and deal with them accordingly. To Joab and Shimei, for the wrong they did, and to Barzillai, for the kindness he gave.  An exact application of the firmness and faith he’s charging his son to embrace. He needs one and the other on both sides of the scale. For a leader is not called merely to police the violators and warn the public, but one who upholds good deeds to inspire the people and further promote God. He’s both the God of mercy and the God of wrath. A God we have to fear, and the God we can embrace. It needs to be a fair reflection.

To my kids, I am quite heavy on the ‘wrath’ side. Sometimes familiarity robs us of the simple joys found in gratitude and appreciation. I have to work on that. But my scale is not balanced with those outside my family either. To maintain a pleasurable relationship, aren’t we all more inclined to be generous with praise and cautious with rebuke? We see our friends blurt out harsh words, post indecent links, curse their parents, complain about the government - - and we do nothing. We somehow hope our inspirational quotes would strike a chord somewhere. David gave him specific names. Shouldn’t we be direct as well?  Check your scales again. And be fair.
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In Fairness

1 Kings 2:6-7
“Deal with him according to your wisdom, but do not let his gray head go down to the grave in peace. But show kindness to the sons of Barzillai of Gilead and let them be among those who eat at your table. They stood by me when I fled from your brother Absalom.”

Too often, what adults put aside, kids beautifully displays affront.  Little things that I take for granted, my little tots marvel at, laugh about, and thank God for. Just now, I gave a banana to Rilian and delightfully he exclaimed, ‘Ang sarap nito mom ah! Thank you Jesus!’. Or the other day, Kjaran showed me her shoes and said, ‘Mom, o, pretty’. I know it was God telling me to stop and praise. Not stop and complain. Because what normally grabs my attention, what makes me leave the computer table, is their loud scream or the mess they created. It takes effort and (their) prompting for me to mind their little achievements. Generous to scold, cautious with praise - - such imbalance :<

At his deathbed, David called in Solomon for his final charge. Given minimal time to delegate, he has to sift through his forty years reign and identify the most important. ‘Be strong’ was his first point. He opened his eyes to the reality of the task at hand. But instead of strategies and solutions, he armed him with strength. ‘Walk in His ways’ was next. He assured him of the promise and presence of God. David need not give details of how to run a kingdom for God’s law is suffice for faith and practice. Solomon just needs to faithfully abide. Third was about three people: Joab the backstabber, Shimei the curse-r, and Barzillai the old man.  David asked his son to mind his unfinished business and deal with them accordingly. To Joab and Shimei, for the wrong they did, and to Barzillai, for the kindness he gave.  An exact application of the firmness and faith he’s charging his son to embrace. He needs one and the other on both sides of the scale. For a leader is not called merely to police the violators and warn the public, but one who upholds good deeds to inspire the people and further promote God. He’s both the God of mercy and the God of wrath. A God we have to fear, and the God we can embrace. It needs to be a fair reflection.

To my kids, I am quite heavy on the ‘wrath’ side. Sometimes familiarity robs us of the simple joys found in gratitude and appreciation. I have to work on that. But my scale is not balanced with those outside my family either. To maintain a pleasurable relationship, aren’t we all more inclined to be generous with praise and cautious with rebuke? We see our friends blurt out harsh words, post indecent links, curse their parents, complain about the government - - and we do nothing. We somehow hope our inspirational quotes would strike a chord somewhere. David gave him specific names. Shouldn’t we be direct as well?  Check your scales again. And be fair.