Member Log InTwelve step recovery programs like Alcoholics Anonymous have a saying that, like much of the philosophy of recovery programs, is a great paradigm to adopt into one’s approach to life. People in recovery are encouraged to develop ‘an attitude of gratitude.’ This is something that, at least for me, has not come naturally.
We are, at any moment, a product of all of our previous experiences. Chances are, at least for some of us, our previous experiences have contributed to our tendency to take some things for granted. The more we take things for granted, the more we are at risk for failure in recognizing the many gifts that God gives us day in and day out.
When things are good, when we perceive that our prayers are answered by God, when His will and ours align, gratitude is an easy accomplishment. It’s easy to thank God when He provides for us what we wanted in the first place! When things are tougher, when God's will appears to be a pathway that we reluctantly take, when we may not see God’s wisdom for us, gratitude becomes a bit more difficult to achieve. My nature, in such circumstances, is to look outside myself, and point to circumstances, people, and events that I believe are responsible for ‘my misfortune.’ This action is a dead-end. Among other things, it keeps me from discovering the real source of my woes: my inability to see how my life is so incredibly blessed by the great God we have, who is crazy in His love for each one of us, especially when God's will for me is something other than what I have determined for myself. Part of my daily prayer is that God keeps me focused on His love, accepting His will for me when I don't see it, particularly in times of trouble and disappointment. God, help me focus less on things that I may see as ‘unfair’ or ‘unjust.’
In his letter to the Colossians, St. Paul exhorts his readers to “Let the peace of Christ control your hearts, the peace into which you were also called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, as in all wisdom you teach and admonish one another, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.” (Colossians 3:15-16) He asks us to trust God before we trust our feelings.
When I am asked questions like “How’s your day?” or “How’s it going?” my response is, almost invariably, “I’m able to sit up and take nourishment.” My family can vouch for this. I'm sure some of them have rolled their eyes more than once. There is a meaning behind that phrase that likely escapes the interrogator and any observer, but is very important to me.
I have experienced professionally in my medical practice the lives of others who find themselves physically unable to do simple maneuvers like "sit up" and "take nourishment." Many of those individuals whom I have encountered remain cheerful, despite their calamities; a fact that I consistently find astonishing, almost impossible to believe.
To respond “I'm able to sit up and take nourishment” is, for me, to acknowledge God’s blessings to me in the day, even when I don’t feel particularly blessed. It is an decision that I know cheerful people do regularly and often. I am thankful for the ability, literally, to sit up and eat. I am thankful for the ability to breathe, and for the air around me to inhale as I breathe. I am thankful that God chooses to bless me, even though I don’t always make the choice to honor Him. In reminding myself that God always intends His best for me (a.k.a. focusing on things of Heaven), I find it far healthier than grousing about whatever it is that I may perceive has disappointed me or on what I might have done that resulted in disappointment of another (a.k.a. focusing on things of earth).
Be grateful! Look for God’s blessings in life. They exist, everywhere. And they’re specific for each of us. Said another way, ". . .be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect." (Matthew 5:48) Gratitude is part of a solid response to the vocational call to holiness.
God bless you!
