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Youth Messenger Online Edition

April-June

The Dirty Cardigan
Anna Kaknics
The Dirty Cardigan

A few years ago, I went on a trip abroad and before my departure I needed to buy some things. I went to a store where I could buy most of the items I needed, and as I went to the cashier, I saw a cute cardigan. Although I really liked it, I didn’t need it so decided not to buy it. But as I walked home, I felt a little sad about it.

The next day, I went to the playground with my mom and my sisters. Before we left to return home, my mom put something next to me on the bench and said, “It was in the sand; I had put it by the swing but it seems no one looked for it.” As I looked more closely at the dirty piece of clothing, I realized it was the same cardigan that I saw at the store yesterday! It was the same brand and size! I was sure that it was not there accidentally. So, I decided to take it home; I washed it and was thankful to have it.

A few years later, I was organizing my clothes and found that cardigan. I wondered why I didn’t wear it all this time. It surprised me that something that I wanted so badly I didn’t care for anymore.

I am thankful to the Lord for this little experience because I realized how He shows us our weaknesses in simple ways. I remembered that as I walked home on that shopping day, I was unhappy. Now, I felt ashamed that I wasn’t content with the clothes I had but wanted more.

During this little experience I was also able to realize how delusive our desires and wishes truly are. The Bible says, “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof” (1 John 2:16, 17). Often when we see nice things, we want to have them but God knows what we actually need. This is why He tells us, “Be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee” (Hebrews 13:5). Are you thanking the Lord each day for all the blessings He has given you? Have you asked Him to help you be content with the things you already have?