5 Days From Growing Grateful by Mary KassianExemplo

Growing Grateful

In my part of the world, winter lingers until the end of March or even longer. By then, I’m tired of the cold, white, lifeless landscape. I yearn for the prairie crocus. This member of the buttercup family is the first flower to burst through the snow and defy the monochromatic scenery. With vivid purple, yellow, and green, it heralds the coming of spring.

I’m always elated to spot the first crocus. Because I know that the daffodils and tulips will rush to follow its lead. The trees will soon blush green. Lilacs, apple blossoms, and lilies of the valley will perfume the air. I’ll plant sweet pea seeds and vegetable seedlings in my garden. Fill the massive clay pot on my deck with herbs. Bed geraniums, petunias, and begonias in the raised planter encircling my patio. Over the course of the summer, I’ll watch the blooms multiply and spill over the stone walls. I’ll pick fragrant herbs for my recipes. Harvest tasty fruit and vegetables for my table. And delight in the beauty and wonder of it all.

Scripture indicates that the Lord causes goodness and gratitude to sprout up in our hearts like shoots in a garden. Gratitude is just as important to Him as goodness. The Gardener of our hearts doesn’t only want us to grow more holy; He also wants us to grow more grateful. He longs to see gratefulness spring up in your life even more than northerners long for the first flowers of spring.

MEDITATION

Is your heart’s garden blooming with gratitude? Would you characterize it as being in a state of winter or spring? What do you think you can do to grow more grateful?

GROW GRATEFUL 

Pray and ask the Lord to help you grow more grateful.