It’s My Right

“Behold, what I have seen to be good and fitting is to eat and drink and find enjoyment in all the toil with which one toils under the sun the few days of his life that God has given him, this is his lot. Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil- this is the gift of God. For he will not much remember the days of his life because God keeps him occupied with joy in his heart.” Ecclesiastes 5:18-20

It’s been a rough few days. A rough few months. A rough few hundred years. Why do I say that, you ask? Because as an African-American woman I have been reminded yet again of the color of my skin by acts in my country that make it hard for me to be Satisfied with the state of my liberties. George Floyd lost his life last week due to racism and privilege being executed over him in the form of senseless acts of violence that turned deadly. A law abiding citizen, wrongfully accused, who was Satisfied with his life (as far as we know) is no longer with us and it’s hard to smile, and be happy, knowing that we share the one thing that made him a target: skin tone. In response to these acts, others who share in being melanated have taken to aggressive and sometimes violent expressions of emotions to try to heal the pain that they feel. I’m not here to condone or condemn, but I will absolutely say that I understand and share in their pain.

This week’s writing is going to feel a little different, because I am going to talk about Satisfaction but in a way that doesn’t tell you all to be Satisfied in the face of adversity, but to hopefully point out to those who have deemed my race unworthy of what God has said belongs to His people. “Behold, what I have seen to be good and fitting is to eat and drink and find enjoyment in all the toil with which one toils under the sun the few days of his life that God has given him, this is his right.” (Ecclesiastes 5:18) Basically, every man that walks upon this earth and puts in works has the right to enjoy the fruits of that labor. We all have the right to work and to rest and to enjoy our lives. All of us. Satisfaction in life is a right. Not a privilege, but a RIGHT. The scripture goes further to say “Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil- this is the gift of God.” (Ecclesiastes 5:19) Long story short? The money, power, and fame? The enjoyment? Those are a GIFT. Let’s break this down.

God has made it the RIGHT of man to enjoy the fruits of his labor. That fruit might be a day of rest after working so hard, a good meal at the end of the day, spending time with family and friends, a treat that you’ve saved up for, or splurging when you get an unexpected bonus. God’s word says if you work throughout your life, it’s your right to enjoy your life. But He also says that while He gives wealth, possessions, and power. and he wants us to enjoy it, too, it is a GIFT. Basically, God says it is our Right to enjoy the Gift He has given us. If God has deemed it so, then who is man to decide that is not the case?

What I have discovered in working with people, and living amongst them is that as a people, we are Selfish. We want what we want at the sake of others having it too. If someone gets in our way, we want to move them out of our way so that we can continue to be happy. But we have to remember that God says that EVERY ONE who walks this earth has the right to the simply enjoy that walk. How can we call ourselves good or Christ-like if we can only be that at the expense of someone else? How can we call making someone else’s walk harder the Godly thing to do? How can we use our gifts to make it impossible for someone else to enjoy theirs? I dare say that we cannot.

The bible tells us to love our neighbor as ourselves. What it does not say is that we get to choose our neighbor. There is a mentality amongst many of privilege that if they don’t want to love their neighbor that they should just pick a new neighbor. History is full of people making it harder for the people they don’t want to be their neighbor to live near them, work near them, shop where they shop, eat where they eat, exist where they exist, because they don’t want to be uncomfortable with the charge they say they want to uphold. But if you manipulate the rules, are you playing fair? Or are you cheating? “For he will not much remember the days of his life because God keeps him occupied with joy in his heart.” (Ecclesiastes 5:20) If you have joy in your heart, you shouldn’t have to focus so much on how hard it’s been to get here, because you’re making good memories instead. Don’t tarnish your good memories with spoiling someone else’s. And remember, God can and will take His gifts away if we tarnish them.

So my challenge to my readers who are uncomfortable, but not in pain, is to remember that we ALL have the right to enjoy the life that God has gifted to us. And having man made privilege doesn’t change that. His word is His word. It’s time to get Satisfied with the fact that you even have a life to live, and let others do the same. And for my readers who are in pain, and your Satisfaction is being challenged? I’m with you. Process this the best way you can, take breaks from the media, find solace in family and friends, express yourselves in healthy ways. And I pray next week we have more to be Satisfied about.