Maintaining an Attitude of Gratitude

Maintaining An Attitude of Gratitude

Each day, we offer thanks over our meals.  Saying our “daily grace” is a simple spiritual ritual possessing potential to spur personal development and spiritual progress.  “Daily grace” reminds us of Almighty God’s enduring goodness and provision.  It is by God’s grace we eat, have shelter, work and educate our children.  Jesus tells us to consider the lilies of the fields and the sparrows of the air.  Just as God supplies their needs, He takes care of us.  “Daily grace” yields thanksgiving for people and opportunities that enrich our lives.  Offering “daily grace” before each meal compels us to remember brothers and sisters who are less fortunate than we are.  With hearts of gratitude, we seek to be a blessing in appreciation for our bountiful blessings.

The psalmist proclaims, “It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, our God.”  Thanksgiving is the essence of praise and worship.  We adore the Lord through songs, prayers, and acts of gratitude.  God is always good to us whether we are aware of His many kindnesses or not.  Even when life’s circumstances eclipse Him, He remains good to us.  In fact, theologians insist one of God’s distinct characteristics is “omnibenevolence.”  Kindness is inherent in His actions and will.  It is good to offer daily thanksgiving with praise and worship to God for His many splendid blessings.

Difficult circumstances usually tempt us to suspect God abandons us.  We quickly ask, “Where is God?”  “Why is He allowing this to happen to me?”  Is faith useless?  Are we left alone to ferret out life’s challenges?  The Bible contains many promises of provision.  Genesis 22:1-19 records a test of Abraham’s faith.  After fulfilling the magnificent promise of giving Abraham an heir, God directs Abraham to Mt. Moriah with the explicit instruction to sacrifice Isaac upon an altar.  There, Abraham prepares the altar, the wood and the fire.  Isaac asks, “Where is the lamb?”  Abraham replies, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.”  In obedience, Abraham raises the knife to slay Isaac.  But an angel of the Lord stops him!  Abraham’s willingness to offer Almighty God his beloved son, Isaac, enables him to pass this test of faith.  As the story concludes, a ram caught in the thicket becomes the sacrifice.  Essentially, God provides for us in all situations. 

David cites another significant promise of God’s provision in Psalm 37:25-26.  “I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread.  They are always generous and lend freely; their children will be blessed.”  God takes care of our needs just as He clothes the lilies of the field and feeds the birds of the air, neither of whom is prone to worry about their daily subsistence.  The righteous will not be forsaken!

Paul admonishes the church to “give thanks in all circumstances for this God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 5:18)  Whether we are facing job, marital, familial, health, financial, emotional, and psychological challenges, we ought to give thanks to God.  The confluence of these challenges presents an opportunity to develop personally and grow spiritually.  As we confront these dilemmas rather than avoiding them, we become stronger people.  (Romans 5:1-5 and James 1:2-4)  Tribulation builds patience in us.  Tests build character symbolic of a refiner’s fire, which burns dross and impurities off of gold and other precious metals.

We give thanks in our daily affirmations.  I suggest we recite names of spouses, children, extended family, friends, colleagues and other primary persons each day.  As we give thanks for them, we strengthen our relationships.  Additionally, we express thanks for our material blessings, health, jobs, and good fortune.  In offering gratitude, we rarely complain about them.  We appreciate various ways in which they enhance our lives.  By giving thanks, we increase the value of life’s simple things.