Profound Gratitude
A couple of years back I started a morning routine of starting my day with gratitude. I used to hit the snooze and for the 9 minutes between alarms, I would start naming things I’m grateful for. I have made it a habit to begin each day with a grateful heart. Even when my heart is troubled or heavy, I still have so much to be grateful for.
Cicero said that “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others”. I believe that gratitude gives great perspective to my day and my life in general. If I can start with gratitude, it reduces the space in my head and in my heart for anger and malice.
Elisha has a great relationship with this family who had provided him an “Air BNB” whenever he came that way at no charge. He blessed her family as they were a huge blessing to him. One day her young child gets a severe headache and dies. She goes to get Elisha. He immediately comes. I imagine he starts praying to God about this as he is on his way. Check this out….
32 When Elisha arrived, the child was indeed dead, lying there on the prophet’s bed.33 He went in alone and shut the door behind him and prayed to the Lord. 34 Then he lay down on the child’s body, placing his mouth on the child’s mouth, his eyes on the child’s eyes, and his hands on the child’s hands. And as he stretched out on him, the child’s body began to grow warm again! 35 Elisha got up, walked back and forth across the room once, and then stretched himself out again on the child. This time the boy sneezed seven times and opened his eyes!
36 Then Elisha summoned Gehazi. “Call the child’s mother!” he said. And when she came in, Elisha said, “Here, take your son!” 37 She fell at his feet and bowed before him, overwhelmed with gratitude. Then she took her son in her arms and carried him downstairs. (2 Kings 4:32-37 NLT)
It does my heart good to be overwhelmed with gratitude. When I have profound gratitude, there is no room for a selfish spirit. Gratitude reminds me to think of others. Gratitude reminds me of the blessings in my life. Gratitude exudes positive energy into my everyday life. Billy Graham said, “Gratitude is one of the greatest Christian virtues; ingratitude, one of the most vicious sins.”
I have started a list of things I’m grateful for and my wife and family are at the top of the list. I am so very blessed with a beautiful family and a ton of great friends. I want to do my very best to serve them from the gratitude deep in my heart. I want to be ALWAYS be grateful to the Lord for His Presence in my life and His faithfulness to me. He is faithful even when I’m not. He is patient with me when I’m not grateful.
I want to live and work in a permanent state of gratitude. I want to keep counting my blessings and when I feel like I’m at the end of my list, I’ll start over again and again.
Pressing On!
Dwayne