Favoritism
"Now Isaac loved Esau, because he had a taste for game, but Rebekah loved Jacob." - Genesis 25:28
"Mom always liked you best!" declared Tom during a performance of The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour, a television show that aired in the late 60's. As proof of this charge, Tom would remind his brother that when their mother gave Dick a pet puppy, all Tom got was "a lousy chicken."
Parental favoritism exacerbates sibling rivalries with a sense of jealousy and resentment. And it is true that God does choose to bless some in different ways from other siblings. Some children will have more gifts than others. Some may have more wealth. Some may have a greater intellect. Some may have more athletic ability. And some may have a special calling in the kingdom of God. That's a part of life.
So as parents, what do we do about this? Most importantly, as earthly parents, we are called to be fair to our children, while accepting the fact that God is going to choose to bless certain children in ways He doesn't bless other children. Regardless of special blessings, know that every child is important to God and loved by Him. He has called on us to recognize that each child is a unique creation of God and to fairly reflect the love from their Heavenly Father.
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4 Comments
the issue of fair seem to stump alot of people. What is fair to me is not to someone else.As a believer I'll do my best to rest in God's fairness. A win win. - gary
I'm not saying that it was the right way to handle things, but whenever my kids got into an altercation of some kind together, even if one was more at fault I always found something to point out to the other one that they should have handled differently. In other words I never made it about just the one of them. I think there are different stages in life when you might be closer to one child more than another, but you absolutely have to not make it about favorites. You never know when life circumstances will take that favorite more out of your life than the other like college or business transfer. Then suddenly you're left with the one that you may have been less kind to. Who knows by the end of your life how dependent you may have to be on the one you didn't treat as well. - Christ follower
I like what that well known philosopher, Erma Bombeck said.
"Every mother has a favorite child. It's the one that needs her most right now." - Grant
Thanks Grant- Amen to that! - christ follower