My 6-year-old son recently came to me with a request. He had given it real thought and felt it was an important matter I needed to consider. He asked if the responsibility of feeding our dog could be spread around to more family members. He had grown tired of bearing this heavy load on his shoulders alone.

“It takes all of about 1 minute of your day to feed this beast breakfast and dinner,” I said. “That’s too much work? Your life is too burdensome? Let’s see—what all chores do you have?”

“I have to do my own laundry,” he responded.

“You do your own laundry?” I didn’t believe it. Later investigation revealed that my wife washes his clothes, folds them, puts them in a bin and places the bin in his bedroom. His responsibility is merely to transfer the clean clothes into his dresser drawers. Tough life!

It’s easy to get our perspective off the way he did. To feel like the sacrifices we make are so great, our responsibilities so severe. To think we’re under heavy stress and pressure. You know who’s under a lot of pressure? Navy Seals in urban combat. Mexican policemen fighting drug cartels. You and I have cushy, beautiful lives most people would love to have!

As teens, we like to think of ourselves as mature. But we still have this childish, ungrateful, limited perspective. It reveals itself when we act like we know everything and our parents just don’t understand. However, when our minds actually do mature, something happens. We begin to see qualities in our parents we didn’t see before. We recognize wisdom we didn’t formerly perceive. As we begin to face adult-sized challenges, we realize that they successfully navigated those obstacles. We realize what it means to do our own laundry.

The Apostle Paul said there are things you simply don’t understand as a child (1 Corinthians 13:11). He told the Church members to grow up—to stop thinking like children and start thinking like men (1 Corinthians 14:20).

In many ways, that means growing out of being self-oriented, self-focused, self-impressed, self-absorbed—and learning how to appreciate and give to those around you. Herbert W. Armstrong said godly maturity basically means moving from a state of taking to a state of giving. Part of that is recognizing and being thankful for the sacrifices your parents have made for you.

The ungrateful perspective, the know-it-all attitude, reveals immaturity and self -love. That comes straight from Satan. True maturity is humble, forgiving, generous and appreciative.

This fact is doubly true when it comes to our relationship with our spiritual Father. God and Christ have sacrificed so much for you—far more than you realize! It takes true spiritual maturity to realize this. The greater your maturity, the more you’ll realize it.

Especially around the spring holy day season, God wants us to get our perspective right and to remember the sacrifices of the God Family. Read 1 John 4:9-10. Think on what love it was for God to send His Son to Earth in order to die for your sins—so that you might live.

Focus on the Father risking losing His eternal companion. If Christ had sinned even once, the Father would have ended up alone for eternity! Focus on the Word giving up everything in order to be born as a human being (John 1:14)—just for the possibility of expanding God’s Family. What would you be willing to sacrifice for someone else? Focus on how the Lamb strove with every fiber of His being to remain sinless—even to the point of sweating blood (Luke 22:42-44; Hebrews 12:4). Focus on how the Lamb allowed Himself to be beaten and killed for you! You and I could never and would never do that. But because He did, you have the opportunity to be in God’s Family forever!

These are extremely difficult concepts to really get. Why? Because of our selfish focus. Because of our immaturity.

Maybe you sometimes dwell on what you have to give up for God: a place on the football team, a Friday night party, a relationship with your classmate who asks you out. But no matter what sacrifice you make, it doesn’t come close to God’s sacrifices for you! You could never match what God and Christ have given you! “We love him, because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19). Instead of thinking about how hard you have it, get your mind on all that God has done and continues to do for you!

There is a level of understanding and appreciation of God that we won’t have until we are spirit beings. We’re looking at a dim reflection in a mirror (1 Corinthians 13:12)—not really seeing the depth of God as He is.

That’s exactly why Passover is so valuable. God says, I want you to stretch your mind and focus on the Lamb! Get your mind off yourself and fix it on your Savior and what He did for you—and what I did for you! Work at it! Examine yourself. Evaluate your maturity and understanding. Pray for deeper appreciation. It takes spiritual maturity and time—but it is well worth all the effort you make!