Life is filled with wonderful blessings from God. We have fun with our friends and family, we have varieties of delicious foods to eat, and we love playing outside.
But when we’re young, we tend to think we should have EVERYTHING we want ALL the time! The problem is mistakenly thinking WE know what’s best for us, but it’s really God who does. Good parents do their best for us, so it’s wise to trust and obey them! Speaking about God, Matthew (6:8, NIV) says, “…your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.” Colossians (3:20, NIV) says, “Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord.”
It helps to think about the future in the “short term” and the “long term.” The “short term” means getting something right away that seems nice at the time. Maybe that’s eating candy for breakfast, lunch and dinner. But in the “long term” – later – you’ll be sick! That’s a simple example of how getting something NOW in the short term SEEMS good, but really, it can cause future problems in the long term. Just because we want something doesn’t mean it’s good for us – in the short term OR the long term!
God can see the big picture for ALL of us – we cannot. He knows what’s best for us in the long term. Good parents know a lot about what their kids need to stay safe and healthy on a daily basis. So when we start to feel like we should get everything we want – whenever we want it – let’s trust that God always knows best about what we need, and good parents are trying their best.
Our next thought might be, “That’s not fair!” And that’s understandable, because at this time, life ISN’T fair. People lie, steal, and hurt others. We live in an unfair and sinful world, but eventually, it WILL be made fair – because of God’s beautiful plan for EVERYONE!
In God’s future kingdom, sin will eventually be removed and everyone will be given lots of help to make good choices — like sharing and thinking of others instead of themselves.
However, even though we know things will be made fair in the future, right now we still need to be patient, obedient, and do our best in the circumstances that God has allowed us to be in. He ALWAYS knows what’s best!
So, why can’t we have everything we want? Because what we want may not be good for us. We have to trust that God knows what we need, and good parents try to do what’s best for us in the long run. Even though life isn't fair right now because of sin, eventually in God’s kingdom, sin will be removed and all will have the opportunity to make good choices that will promote fairness for ALL people. We are thankful for God’s plan!
This video is from Christian Questions Podcast. For more information please go to https://christianquestions.com