Growing in Gratitude

   Over the years, I’ve become fascinated by the topic of gratitude.  Psychologists and doctors have discovered that grateful people have higher energy, lower blood pressure, healthier hearts, fewer moments of frustration and insomnia, and they have more patience and hope. In other words, gratitude seems to be one of the best predictors of human well-being.  There are routine moments of thanks that each of us use throughout our day.  Wherever small favors are given and received, we voice our thanks.  But sometimes we experience larger moments of gratitude.  Maybe a stranger stops to help you change a tire on the side of a busy interstate.  Maybe a community comes forward with donations and food for a couple that just lost their house to a fire.  Maybe a teacher spends countless hours after school to help you learn a subject and get into your dream college. Often moments of substantial favors fill us with a spirit of gratitude and thanks.
   While gratitude can be found in moments, truly grateful people are inclined to feel gratitude most of the time. Instead of only noticing blessings in big moments, grateful people are quick to recognize them in the everyday. We could say that their character includes a grateful disposition.  Amid awfulness, these people insist that good still exists.
    I believe that Scripture is meant to shape us into grateful people. I also believe that Christianity is a religion of God’s grace and our gratitude towards Jesus Christ. Throughout the Bible gratitude is urged, commanded, and turned into a sacred duty. The writers of Scripture thank God for their blessings and encourage the readers to join them. Sometimes the writers are up to their neck in troubles and yet they still take time to give thanks to a
good God.
   There are many ways to awaken our gratitude if it feels a little sluggish.  Many people keep a list of their daily blessings. They purposely take time to notice and dwell on the good.  Intentionally speaking about what excites our thanks disrupts moments of ingratitude.  We can also pray for gratitude. Even if after we pray the problem still exists, the sheer act of praying to God can make us deeply aware and thankful for God’s presence.  As a child, I had to be taught gratitude, it didn’t come naturally, and some days it still doesn’t.  Each day I need the gracious power of God to stir up true thankfulness in my heart.