Choose to Be Grateful

Author Melody Beattie once wrote, “Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more… It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.” 

All of that said, gratitude is a discipline in that it involves a conscious effort. It is a choice. Am I going to notice the gifts around me as gifts, or as entitlements? Am I going to consciously recognize what difference my faith has made in my life? My faith community? Christ himself? And once I notice, how am I going to respond?

13th-century Christian Mystic Meister Eckhart once wrote, “If the only prayer you ever pray is thank you… that will suffice….”

Gratitude is a choice, isn’t it? 

As I return from my sabbatical, my heart is filled with gratitude. I am grateful for the opportunity I have had to step back for a period of time, to gain some perspective, and to grow in my faith. I am grateful for each of our guest pastors, for our Dial Hope board of directors whose hard work and generosity made this possible. And I am grateful for each one of you, who listen or read our messages.

Let us pray: God of all good gifts, we don’t have to look far to see the need in the world around us. We see it on the news, in our jobs, in our neighborhoods, and even in our own families… And so we ask you to hear the prayers of our hearts and meet us at the deepest point of our struggles. At the same time, we also see great beauty and truth. And we thank you for glimpses of hope along the journey – especially in people who give generously and thoughtfully to others. We ask today that you would continue to give us eyes to see your hands at work; your blessings on every side, ears that are attuned to the whisper of your voice, and hearts to respond. We pray in Jesus’s name