AN ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE

When my children were younger, I told them that I knew the secret to happiness.  They laughed and tried to guess what it was.  Finally, I told them: “gratitude.”  I said you cannot be unhappy, angry, sad, miserable, while at the same time, grateful.  It just doesn’t work that way.

Focusing on the blessings in our lives can be a game-changer each and every day.  Of course, there are always things that aren’t going well, things that didn’t meet our expectations, relationships that are difficult or less than ideal.  

But, if we always try to step back from a rough situation and say a prayer of thanks for the things that are going well, things that meet or exceed our expectations, relationships that are love-filled — the negatives look far less daunting.  

Sometimes, the simplest things can give you a jolt of happiness.  Someone’s smile, a dog’s happy tail wag, a beautiful sunset, no line at the bank — but we are prone to miss them, if we don’t make it our habit to cast a glance to heaven and say “thank you.”

At the wedding at Cana, Jesus could have changed the water into the same wine that was served earlier in the day.  Instead He chose not only to provide more than what was needed — but to give an even better quality wine than before!

Our God is such a generous God.  He wants the best for us — in fact, He became man, lived, died and rose again so that we may have the opportunity to have the best eternal life with Him in heaven.  He showers us each day with His love, care and protection.  How it must please Him when we notice these blessings and take a moment to direct our gratitude toward Him!

There are days or even seasons of life when we are faced with greater difficulty than normal.  Perhaps an illness or a loss of a job or the death of a loved one — it may be very hard to find something to be grateful for during those times.  

Let’s learn from our holy brothers and sisters that have gone before us.  I have found that the lives of the saints are truly deep wells of inspiration.  They actually embraced suffering as an opportunity to unite with Christ and participate in the sacrifice He offered on behalf of all.  Though meager in comparison to Christ’s suffering, thanking God for our trials directs our eyes heavenward instead of closing in on ourselves, and draws us ever closer to Him. 

The next time we find ourselves obsessing about a lack, a problem or an injustice — let’s take a moment to think of both the gifts of plenty and the gifts of sacrifice in our life and tell the Source of those gifts a heartfelt “thank you!”