One day after a surgery about 20 years ago, someone gave me a gratitude journal. It made me frustrated to even look at it, and I gave up after a couple of tries. It wasn’t part of my routine yet to show gratitude regularly. What I want to say is that even though gratitude is the answer, and was the answer to my trials 20 years ago, it is a skill that must be learned and practiced. After surgery 20 years ago, I wasn’t equipped to benefit from a gratitude journal, simply because my attitude was wrong and I wasn’t habitually grateful. The power of gratitude in my life has come with time and intentional effort. True gratitude drives out negativity. I believe the gratitude God is talking about in His commandment is childlike in its simplicity, broad in its understanding, and ultimately makes us see the His hand in our lives.
Sometimes I get gratitude all wrong. It takes time to understand what is really going on here: every day is Christmas morning and we are the children walking into the room, discovering the gifts that have been given. Will I run to the Giver of the gifts quickly, or will I drag my feet in acknowledging the gift, or worse, not even notice something?
Sure, many times there is a gift sitting there not on my “list,” and it might take some time to find the right place for it. Other gifts are so beautiful, it’s easy to see He loves me. Some gifts take time to put together, and that is okay that I don’t see the end as I work through the mess. And there are the gifts that are so predictable that I hardly notice them. The gift of gratitude brings back childlike wonder, submissiveness, and joy not just in the gifts, but in the process of discovering the gift disguised in difficulty or routine. For those complex gifts with lots of moving parts to assemble, I have learned that I can show gratitude when I find individual pieces that fit, not just the finished product.
Have you seen the videos of parents wrapping simple things such as a banana or a spoon, and filming he children’s reactions when the gifts are opened?
“A banana! Look, I got a banana!” (Child runs around the house waving his banana and showing everyone his new banana) This kid is my hero. This is step one: delight in whatever is there.
Step two is to seek the Giver and connect with Him. This is when the really good stuff happens.