What If You Went Without…?

What would your life be like if you could not go to the movie theater because there wasn’t one? What if you could not go to the convenience store and buy a candy bar? What if you did not have a public library to visit? What if you did not have the Internet, or even a computer?

What if you had to share a room with your sibling(s)? What if your family did not have a car? What if you were not able to afford a college education? What if you did not have a television?

Still, not too bad, is it?

Let’s go a little further. What if you did not have electricity? What if you did not have running water? What if you had running water but no hot water? What if you had to go to the nearest town center to get your water? What if you only had the clothes on your back? What if you only had one pair of shoes? What if you did not know when and from where your next meal was coming?

This is beginning to sound pretty severe, isn’t it?

Well, it should not sound bad or even out of the ordinary if you compare it to the current situation of many around the world. There are millions of teenagers who live each day absolutely content with the picture described above. You will find these teenagers on sports fields having a blast. You will see them smiling and enjoying their lives. You will find that they are happy with what they have, probably never knowing or even imagining all that you have.

Now, for a moment, put yourself in their shoes. The luxuries that you have grown accustomed to and take for granted are not even thoughts in their minds, and yet they are content. They perhaps spend much of their lives personally and manually working for their meals, playing with their school friends and living day to day.

Imagine if you, being in their shoes, were now asked all the above questions again? How would you react? What if you were given a closet full of clothes, multiple pairs of shoes, plenty of meals and snacks whenever you felt like eating, hot water, electricity, and so on? Would you not be the most delighted, thankful, appreciative teenager in the world?

Do you realize that you can—and should—be more thankful for what you have? If you lost all that was referenced, what would you do? Would you be depressed? Would you feel that you had lost your life?

Think back over the past few weeks. Were you content with what you had? Were you thankful for what you had received? Were you appreciative of the many blessings in your life? Or, were you worrying about friendships at school, complaining about your homework, resenting the fact that you could not get that new pair of jeans, and wondering when you would have a chance to see the new blockbuster movie that just came out?

A World of Rights

Everyone in the western world, including you, has been programmed to believe that all they have and are given are rights—that they deserve them. People do not thank their employers for the chance to work and earn a wage, but rather complain that their employers don’t thank them for being an employee. They believe that they deserve their paycheck each week as long as they simply “put in the hours,” without attaining the required standards.

Young people believe that their room is their own domain and that everything in it belongs solely to them. They come to believe that what their parents provide for them each day is their right.

Many young people are completely unfamiliar with the fact that life is simply not “fair” much of the time. They are not taught this all-encompassing principle as they grow into adulthood, and, therefore, come to act as if everything is supposed to be fair, especially when someone else has gained or achieved something and they have not. One of the greatest lessons that parents can teach their children is that life will be unfair. This prepares them for the inevitable “curve balls” in life that always come. Perhaps if their focus was to be more thankful for what they do have, teenagers would spend less time complaining about what they do not have.

However, the state of society today was prophesied to come. Note what the apostle Paul wrote: “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, UNTHANKFUL, unholy, without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God” (II Tim. 3:1-4).

So, then, we must ask: What are your rights, if any? What do you deserve, if anything?

The only place to turn is the one source that has the answers. Would not the Creator of EVERYTHING that you see around you have the answers? Are you willing to say that the way you look at your life may be wrong? Are you willing to admit that you may be taking for granted all that you have? Are you able to see that what you feel you deserve may not be what you deserve after all?

God Owns Everything!

Let’s take a brief look at a couple of scriptures: “Now therefore, if you will obey My voice indeed, and keep My covenant, then you shall be a peculiar treasure unto Me above all people: for all the earth is Mine (Ex. 19:5). Also, “your silver and your gold is Mine” (I Kgs. 20:3).

It is God who has given you everything that you have. He has given you all your physical possessions; He has given you the family relationships that you treasure; He has given you the very breath that keeps you alive.

Many of our Ambassador Youth readers have received an abundance of physical blessings because of God’s promise to Abraham millennia ago. The modern nations that descended from ancient Israel have received many physical blessings and they, along with the citizens within those countries, did nothing to deserve that abundance.

When was the last time you stopped and considered that all you have was given to you by God? Do you recognize that you do not deserve anything? That your life and everything in it is a gift from Almighty God? While these are not typical questions for a teenager to ponder, they should help you truly understand how thankful you should be.

Taking Your Life For Granted

Have you found yourself forgetting what you are blessed to have? The answer is: Of course! Human beings routinely forget!

It has been said that one of the greatest sins is ingratitude. It is especially hard to be thankful for things that you have always had. The best thing to do is to put yourself in others’ shoes.

Ask yourself: “What if I lived like so-and-so?” Periodically try to picture your life without the many small comforts that you are so accustomed to having. This can help you to be thankful for what you have.

Changing Your Perspective

For the rest of your life, try to see things from a different perspective. Have you ever been up against a seemingly insurmountable obstacle? Often, just when you were about to give up, someone came along with a fresh look at the matter. The answer was there the whole time, but it took a different perspective for you to see it.

Even with willpower and determination, it is not easy for a person to change his perspective. A particular way of thinking or ingrained habits can be very hard to break or overcome. It often takes a traumatic experience or a period of “going without” to see life differently. This is commonly called “learning the hard way.” The other way to learn is by example.

Be determined to change your perspective on life. Start with the basic premise that all you have is NOT yours. Realize that you do not deserve all that you have been given. If you start each day with these basic thoughts, it will become easy to be more thankful. You will be looking at the world with different eyes and, in the end, it will make you a happier person.

Determine to show God that you are thankful. In your daily prayers, be sure to thank Him about at least one aspect of your life. And do not just keep it general—be as specific as you can to show your appreciation! Each day, cover a different area of blessings in your life. As Paul said, “Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks” (I Thes. 5:16-18).

Show your parents and siblings that you are thankful as well. Don’t be focused on those things in life that seem “unfair.” Don’t continually worry about the areas in your life that are not going “smoothly.” Be concerned with their lives. There is much to be thankful for and your family should know that you are not taking them for granted.

Start each day with the same attitude that David had: “This is the day which the Lord has made; we will rejoice and be glad in it” (Psa. 118:24). If you just start by being thankful for the new day, you will be able to look at your life in a different light.

The Biggest Blessing

We still have not discussed the greatest blessing that you possess. It is the understanding of and the opportunity to live God’s way of life. If it is true to say that there are billions who do not have the physical blessings that many of the youth in God’s Church have, then it could be said that almost 100% of the earth’s population does not have the spiritual blessings that you have been given.

As a youth in God’s Church, you are sanctified—set apart. You are able to understand what is being taught at Sabbath services. You are able to read the literature, including this magazine, and understand it. However, this does not make you better than those who do not have this blessing. In fact, the Bible states that much is required of those to whom much is given (Luke 12:48).

Never forget that it is a blessing to learn and understand the truths of God. This far outweighs any physical blessings you can receive!

From this time forward, periodically pause and look at your life. Continually remind yourself what it would be like without all of the many things you have been given. In your mind, strip away all the luxuries, comforts, and even what you might consider necessities. Then ask: “Would I still be happy?” You should be—and can be!