An Attitude of Gratitude

Today I read Doctrine and Covenants section 62. This period of time for the early Saints seems to be an interesting time. Several of the revelations cover the exact same topics and items. It sometimes makes it a challenge to find new things to talk about on here. Today I was struck by a phrase the Lord has said many times before and repeated in this section.

In verse 7 the Lord tells the brethren that He does not care how they return home, so long as if the Lord blesses them they receive the blessing with thankfulness in their hearts. I knew a song when I was a child and I cannot remember how it goes anymore except for one line and the accompanying tune. The words that always run through my mind are "An attitude of gratitude". I have no idea how the rest of that song went but I sure do remember that line.

I have a very good friend at work that sits next to me and she and I talk everyday. Sometimes we stick to work topics, other times we talk about stuff outside of work, and sometimes we like to complain ABOUT work. Let's face it, no matter how much you love your job, everyone has bad days or days where things go wrong or employees just seem to not want to work, etc and it can make for a bad day or a bitter you. Well, like most of you I am sure, I work in the customer service industry and not only do I have to worry about my employees, I also have to worry about my customers.

My friend at work likes to describe it as "the microwave generation". They want what they want and they don't want to have to wait for it! It is a very apt description indeed. The strange/sad thing is it does not just affect those of the rising or current generation. It has infested some of the people in every generation that are on the earth. You could also describe it as a general spirit of ingratitude. I have NEVER in my life come face to face with a people so ungrateful for what they have. Now, to be fair it is not everyone at work and certainly not all of my customers, but it does seem to be a disproportionate amount!

I even find myself falling into this trap at times. What's worse, is the person I seem to have the most trouble saying thanks to for something, is my wife! Can you believe that? The person I should be saying thanks to the most in this life, besides God, and she's the one person I consistently have an issue thanking for. Now my wife and I both make a conscious effort to say thank you more often than we have in the past and it has helped tremendously and I have found myself saying thank you more often to the people who are a little less important in my life.

But it has me thinking because usually the things that I have noticed with my wife and I though is I really don't have a reason for not being more grateful to her. The times I have a problem saying thank you, it is almost physically hard or difficult, I can think of no other way to explain it honestly. But the natural man in me, I guess, takes so strong control that it is almost like trying to wade through jelly. Maybe it's like that for others? Maybe when they think that they should say thank you the natural man kicks in and feeds them lies like they deserve it anyway so they shouldn't have to say thank you, or something similar. But the fact of the matter is, we all need to say thank you.

Oddly enough the people who seem to have the hardest time saying thank you are the prideful and the rich. Generally speaking of course, I have known many wealthy people in my time that were very humble and full of gratitude. But it is strange that the prideful would have such a hard time saying thank you. Maybe it has to do with the fact that the prideful don't want to admit that they need the help? I'm not really sure. The Lord has made it clear though that He will not only have a humble people, but He will have a grateful people on top of it! But most humble people are a thankful people. I say most because I have met humble people who are not full of gratitude, although it is rare.

When is the last time you said a prayer and only thanked God for what you have? It is REALLY hard surprisingly. But it also really forces you to think about what the Lord has done for you. A final thought that I think most people may not think about too. Have you ever been late for a meeting and need to find a parking space so you say a little prayer. Then as if by magic you find one right next to you. How many in that instance will then say, "Don't worry God, I found one"? Rather shouldn't you say, "Thank you, Heavenly Father, for answering my prayer so immediately! I really appreciate it." Remember God is upset when we confess not His hand in ALL things! Food for thought. Until tomorrow.