Needs and Wants

Below is an article about needs and wants written by Zainab Salman, based on the points discussed in Session 33.

We rarely think about them, but Needs and Wants are an important part of our lives. Lots of things in our lives like shopping and buying things depend upon it. Our needs and wants gradually become part of our thinking.

Needs are very important things that are necessary to have in order for us to survive. Wants can be anything-anything that we want for ourselves. Often, we forget and buy stuff without thinking whether they are our needs or wants.

Needs and Wants are divided into these categories so that they are easier to understand:

Primary Needs:

Basic: Like clothes to wear.

Functional: Things that are necessary for the Need to work-like the clothes to be stitched -so that the need can be functional.

Secondary Needs:

Things that we consider as our needs but are not our basic needs, as we can survive without those. Examples include toothbrushes, furniture, and things that are a part of our home without any apparent reason

Wants: Things that we want- can be anything, wants have no criteria for being a want

There are five basic things that we should be thankful to God for, or more specifically, that we need to be thankful for. These five things are mentioned below:

He has given us our basic needs in abundance

Avoid Wasting and share with others!

He has given us more than our needs

Don’t make them your needs!!! 

He supplied us everything without being asked for them

Don’t consider them as your rights!

We can never thank him enough

Continue to be thankful, feel obliged to him!

He has given us lots of things which we have not worked for/earned

Believe in your lord, he will continue to give!

Lots of things are part of our lives and we sometimes forget to thank God for them. Needs and Wants are such small things that we sometimes forget and learning how to differentiate between them is a great skill.