1 Kings 9:13
"And he said, What cities are these which thou hast given me, my brother? And he called them the land of Cabul unto this day."
When Solomon built the temple, he contracted workers from Hiram, king of Tyre. These men were used to cut down trees and carry them to Solomon to be used in the building of the temple. When the temple was done, Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities that were about five miles from Tyre.
After receiving the cities, Hiram went to look at them and for some reason was not pleased with them. He complained to Solomon about them, and emphasized his displeasure by calling them "Cabul" which means, displeasing. What is interesting about this area is that Hiram eventually restored these cities back to Solomon who did not complain about them, but built them.
Hiram's problem was that he not only wanted the cities, but he wanted Solomon to develop them as well. He wanted to have the cake and frosting as well. He didn't want to have to do anything to improve these cities. Hiram should have known better. When given a cake with no frosting you need to put the frosting on the cake yourself. Complaining didn't help him; instead, it kept him from enjoying these border cities that could have been a help to his kingdom.
There are many times when we are given a cake in life without frosting. There is nothing worse than eating a cake without frosting. Frosting is what makes the cake. Many people complain about the cake of life, but they do nothing to improve the taste of it. There are several principles that we all can learn from this story.
First, life doesn't always give you what you want. Stop expecting everyone to give you everything you want. One of the key principles I've learned about life is if I stop having expectations from everyone then everything others do for me becomes a blessing.
Second, complaining about your cake in life doesn't improve the cake. Complaining has never improved one situation. You can complain about your plot in life, but that will not help to improve it. Complaining is a waste of time. Complaining only proves that you are not content with what God has given you. Instead of complaining about your cake in life, you need to be thankful that God would give you what you have.
Third, if you don't like your cake of life, then put frosting on it. So, you don't like where your life is, instead of complaining to others about your cake of life you need to do something to improve it. We always want God to do everything for us when God expects us to take what He has given us and improve it. It is not that God won't help us, but He expects initiative out of us. You can complain about your cake and that will accomplish nothing, or you can do something about it and put frosting on your cake and make your life better.
What is it that you don't like about your life? If God has given you a cake in life, then He has also given you the wherewithal to put frosting on it with His help. Instead of using your energies to complain, use the same energies to do something about your situation. It is amazing what a little positive initiative and God's help can do about improving negative situations in life. If you feel you have been given a cake in life that you don't like, then decide to put frosting on it by doing something to change your situation. This is the only way you will change your situation.