“It’s not fair”
When we suffer, it’s a natural reaction to think that it’s not fair. We ask, Why me? Why didn’t I get the job? Why did I get this illness? Why have I been treated so badly? Why am I lumbered with this? Why do I have to suffer this? It’s not fair!
We don’t know exactly what lies behind David writing Psalm 6; it’s hard to be sure what is literal and what is metaphorical in his description. But he’s clearly in a lot of pain – whether emotional or physical or both: “I am faint … my bones are in agony. My soul is in anguish … I am worn out from groaning; all night long I flood my bed with weeping and drench my couch with tears” (verses 2, 3, 6).
David doesn’t like what’s happening to him, not one bit, yet never once does he say it’s not fair. Instead, remarkably, he asks for mercy! “Be merciful to me, LORD,” he prays in verse 2. When we say something isn’t fair, we’re thinking that we deserve better. When we ask for mercy, we’re admitting that we deserve worse. It reminds me of something C.J. Mahaney wrote. When he is asked “How are you?” he has taken to saying “Better than I deserve.” Of course, such a reply could sound glib. But it is the truth. So, when we suffer, a cry for mercy might be more appropriate than a cry of “It’s not fair”.