The Haman Syndrome

Why is it common among us humans to focus on what we don’t have instead of what we do have? How did we slide from the place where we used to sing, “Count your many blessing name them one by one…” to just counting the blessing we don’t have?

I’m serious.

I was a pastor for many years. It was easy to sit on the platform and make mental notes about who wasn’t there and how many were absent. Often I would catch myself focusing on the absentees instead of the attendees. Then I would always feel chagrined when I caught myself doing that.

That’s the same problem Haman had. Here was a man who had the King’s blessing, his ear, and his backing. He had unlimited power and was honored by all of the King’s subjects. Except for one.

• Esth. 3:2 And all the king’s servants, that were in the king’s gate, bowed, and reverenced Haman: for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence.
• Esth. 3:3 Then the king’s servants, which were in the king’s gate, said unto Mordecai, Why transgressest thou the king’s commandment?
• Esth. 3:4 Now it came to pass, when they spake daily unto him, and he hearkened not unto them, that they told Haman, to see whether Mordecai’s matters would stand: for he had told them that he was a Jew.
• Esth. 3:5 And when Haman saw that Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence, then was Haman full of wrath.

Haman couldn’t enjoy the honor and respect of a whole kingdom. The ONE person that didn’t bow down erased all the pleasure in his mind. He was fixated on that one negative event in his world.

His emotions wound up leading him to his own death. The Haman Syndrome may not kill you today, but there are other things it will kill.

In a marriage you may have 95% of what you like and what pleases you. If you are not careful, you can go stupid and focus on the 5% you don’t have. Why not enjoy the 95% you do have? Do you truthfully think that your spouse got a 100% deal? (If you do, this Blog can’t help you.  Feel free to go read something else.)

The Haman Syndrome will always surface at your Job, at you Church, in you Marriage and most every other area of your life. You have a choice of letting it take over and obsessing you, or you can do what I talked about earlier.

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It may sound too ‘Old School’ for some of you to sing today.

But the lyrics of the old song written by Johnson Oatman Jr. in 1897 aren’t out of date in 2010.

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Count Your Blessings