Not every job is the perfect job. Not every boss is fair. Not every assignment is your first choice. Not every project can get done in a forty-hour…or even fifty-hour week. Not every pay increase is what you expected. Not every promotion goes your way. Not every meeting is your awards ceremony. Not every transfer is your choice. This is the world…the real world we live in.

In the early church, many believers were servants. Peter’s instruction to these servants is very enlightening. Servants were to respond in respect not only to “the good and gentle” but get this— “also to the unjust.” A gracious response, even in the face of “suffering unjustly,” demonstrates an awareness of God’s sovereignty and acknowledges him as the final authority. Peter says it like this.

1 Peter 2:18-19
Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust. For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly.

So, you didn’t like the way you were treated…. Still upset that someone else got the promotion…. Feel like you got the worst possible project assignment…. Frustrated by circumstances that seem unfair…. Well, you may not want to hear this, but I have a sneaking suspicion that God is trying to teach you something! Are you listening and taking notes?

Father, you never make a mistake, and you never waste our time. May we be humble students who learn from every situation. May we always acknowledge you as the final authority in every area of our lives. In Jesus’ name. Amen.