Imagine you have been selected to participate in a new reality show. It is a year away with all expenses paid by various sponsors. You eagerly peruse the contract. Your only job is to thank the sponsors. Nobody from the production team will contact you. You can travel anywhere you wish. Would you sign up? We all would.
Picture yourself as you first arrive. You are overwhelmed by the upgrade. You are so relaxed because you have people taking care of everything for you. You have only one easy job, to thank the sponsors. You can stay as long as you like in any given city, or use the show’s private jet to explore any place you desire. The most difficult task might be to decide between going on an African safari or relaxing on a private island in Fiji. Why choose? It is all provided gratis, as long as you thank the sponsors.
A few weeks in, you are really getting the hang of living like this. You can order anything you wish. It feels like a dream. You are careful to thank each sponsor for everything you get, and you even offer favorable reviews.
A few months in, it can start to feel like this is normal, like you’re the boss; anything for the star of the show. It may have slipped your mind to mention every sponsor every time, but you definitely thanked them a lot. No big deal if I forget sometimes. I am obviously enjoying their stuff, so that should be enough.
Fast forward to the last month. Time has flown by, and you don’t even know what day it is. The end feels distant. You are living each day to the fullest, getting the most out of it, and not thinking about how life will be when it comes time to return to your regular life. You have certainly slipped a lot more when it comes to repeating the sponsors over and over, but who cares? You are sure people are sick of hearing the same promos. It’s not like they cut you off. It’s just that you are too busy having a great time to stick to the script. It will be fine.
Until it’s not. The final day arrives and you fly home. The executive producer of the show comes in to meet with you. He hands you a bill for over eight million dollars. You find yourself speechless. What? How? I thought this was all free?!
He pulls out the contract you both signed. The agreement was that every item for which you thank the sponsor each time is gratis. Anything you use for which you fail to thank the sponsor is billed to you at full retail. You remember that clause now. Uh oh. You plead, you beg, you start wailing, all to no avail. This is a business, he says, and we pay for those items using the ad revenue you were supposed to generate by saying thank you each and every time. Not sometimes. No plug means no revenue, which means you are on the hook.
This is not a reality show, it is our reality. HaShem puts us here on this earth and takes care of all of our needs for our entire lives. All he asks is that you develop a relationship with Him and show gratitude by observing His rules and uttering praise and thanks. He is not out to get you. He loves you and is rooting for you to succeed. If you slip up, as we all do, there is a path back to Him in repentance. But it is not a free ride.
Keep this in mind when you take off for Winter break. Enjoy it. Don’t waste it cramming in every possible distraction. Use the time when you are away from your regular routine and responsibilities to really think about your life and what you are here to accomplish. HaShem created this beautiful world for you to enjoy, and He told us exactly how to enjoy it, and what to avoid. Renew your relationship with your family and give thanks for this amazing privilege we call life. Have a beautiful winter!
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