(…continued) Our two kids were getting ready for bed one night, and my daughter was all excited. She wanted to show me her new underwear. It was not just any old underwear; it was Strawberry Shortcake underwear. Strawberry Shortcake was a line of dolls in the 1980’s that grew into a huge marketing empire, with Strawberry Shortcake dolls, cartoons, books, tablet paper, clothes, puzzles, jewelry, cereal, and more. I don’t remember what came first, the cartoons or the dolls, but it became huge. The marketing concept was to start a fad, and then, with extensive advertising, create the
need to have what everyone else has, and then, produce more and more stuff, along with feeding the desire to get it all. It worked. Millions of little girls, like my daughter, wanted anything and everything that was connected to Strawberry Shortcake—including Strawberry Shortcake underwear. Of course, her grandmother bought it for her, and she was thrilled.
But not as thrilled as she might have been, because now, there was already a new fad on the way. This was the “Care Bear” sensation, with pretty much the same line of merchandise, all the alluring advertising, and so forth.
My daughter was just hearing about this new fad, so as she was happily showing me her new Strawberry Shortcake underwear, she suddenly got a sad look on her face. I asked her what was wrong. She said, “Dad, this Strawberry Shortcake underwear is nice, but what I would really like is Care Bear underwear.” I said, “Ohhhh, you look so sad.” And she said, “I am sad.” I said, “I can tell this is really bothering you.” She said, “It is.” And I said, “I don’t think you will ever be happy again unless you get some Care Bear underwear.” And she said, “I won’t.”
Then I said, “Let’s think about this for a minute. Let’s talk about what Jesus might be thinking right now as he hears us talking about underwear. I wonder if Jesus is maybe thinking something like this: ‘I am very sad that my little child is so sad, and I am especially sad about why she is sad. I have given her so much—a nice family, a nice home, a nice room and plenty of food to eat; a church and Sunday School she loves; a nice teacher at school and the ability to get good grades; a brand-new piano and a gift for music. Not only that, but she is in good health and…’”
Just then her brother interrupted to join in and said, “And good friends and lots of toys.” By this time, she knew she was beat, so she added a few things of her own, “Grandmas and grandpas who love me, and my bike…”
I said, “That is a long list, isn’t it? Jesus might be looking at you and saying, ‘Look at all I have given to her and she is still so sad today because she doesn’t have Care Bear underwear. That makes me sad.’”
Then my daughter said, “I’m not sad anymore. It’s okay.”
You see, for a while, she had forgotten all her benefits. Psalm 103:2 says, “Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits.”
Does this have any applications to your own life? Think of what you might be lacking and complaining about these days. What might Jesus be thinking about you, after you have been given you so much?
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Psalm 103:1-5 — Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits.
I Chronicles 16:11-12 — Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always. Remember the wonders he has done for you.
Colossians 2:6-7 — So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.
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PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING FOR CHILDREN:
Father, we thank Thee for the night,
And for the pleasant morning light;
For rest and food and loving care,
And all that make the day so fair.
Help us to do the things we should,
To be to others kind and good;
In all we do, all we say,
To grow more loving every day.
~ Author Unknown
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Do you thank God for all you have been given, or do you grumble and groan about what somebody else has and you don’t have? Or, in the words of this children’s song, “Are You Gratefully Humble or Grumbly Hateful?”:
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