Gaining Gratitude

It’s a rainy Saturday morning.  I am in my bed under a pile of soft blankets with not a care in the world.  We have no place to go, no reason to rush, and I have every intention of taking advantage of a still morning like this.  Suddenly, I become of aware of a sound, a voice, and it begins to pull me into consciousness.  The voice registers, it’s my 7 year old singing her heart out in her room.  I glance at the alarm clock and see a big red 6.  I grumble, suddenly covered by a cloud of irritability as I roll over and cram the pillow over my head.   As I will myself to fall back asleep I begin to stew as her voice continues on it’s steady and overly loud tune.  Forget falling back to sleep, instead I start my own pity party in the depths of my heart.  In reality, in  that moment I have everything to be thankful for.   I have a beautiful family, we are healthy, our house is warm, safe, and full of joy.  Our needs are met ten times over as well as many of our wants.  Yet, when my eyes hit that alarm clock, all perspective is lost.  

Living a life of gratitude is hard.   It’s that thing that I aspire towards and just when I feel a wave of it, life happens, my perception blurs, and it slips from my grasp.  It’s usually the day to day that gets me.   The spilled milk, the pile of laundry, the kid’s whining, the rush and the hurry, the burnt dinner, the relationship tension… and pretty soon I am feeling sorry for myself, frustrated, and the thought of feeling thankful for that pile of dishes in the sink is enough to push me over the edge.  Where a spirit of thankfulness should be is all too often replaced by a spirit of grumbling and I have to ask myself, why is being grateful so hard?  

That question reminds me of a list I came across the other day.  It said….

Grateful for:  

Early wakeups = Children to love.

House to clean= Safe place to live.

Laundry= Clothes to wear.

Dishes to wash= Food to eat.

Crumbs under the table= Family meals.

Grocery shopping= Money to provide for us.

Toilets to clean= Indoor plumbing.

Lots of noise= People in my life.

Endless questions= Kids brains growing.

Sore and tired in bed= I’m still alive!

Colossians 3:15-17

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.  And BE THANKFUL.  Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs WITH GRATITUDE in your hearts to God.  And whatever you do, whether in word or in deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, GIVING THANKS to God the Father through him.”

I want to master this fine art of gratitude because it is a reflection of my heart and as a follower of Christ, I am called to do it.  It’s God’s best for me and not only that, it might be more than just about me after all.  What if practicing gratitude in my everyday life was not only for my own benefit, but also for the benefit of others?

Author Michael Yancoski states in his book The Sacred year,  “The internal practice of gratitude causes substantial positive psychological and social changes.  Practicing gratitude not only makes people feel better within and about their life, it also makes them more willing to act kindly towards others.”  

As a spirit of thankfulness takes root in my own hearts, it begins to change my perspective and how I respond to others.  Love and kindness begin to lead out of an overflow of a grateful spirit which God often uses for His glory.  He calls us to a perspective switch, a life of gratitude, because it turns out it’s not all about us.  It’s about Him, His Kingdom and His plan…. And for THAT, I am thankful.