5 Days From Growing Grateful by Mary KassianExemplo

Grateful to You, God

A few weeks ago I watched a reality show starring an organizational guru who helps people declutter their homes. She had a lot of good tips for organizing things, but one part of her intervention puzzled me. Prior to getting started, she had the homeowners kneel in the room and give thanks. Then she had them hug each piece of outdated clothing or junk they were about to trash or recycle and give thanks for that too.

I was confused. The “you” in her “thank-you” had no object. She didn’t explain to whom the thanks ought to be directed. Am I supposed to thank my old blouse? The factory that stitched it? The friend who gifted it to me? The spirit of my closet? The decluttering gods?

True gratitude—Christian gratitude—doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It’s more than a warm, fuzzy feeling of appreciation for something good that comes my way. It’s far deeper and more profound than that. It rises above every other form of gratitude, for it acknowledges that God, the Father of Jesus Christ, is the ultimate source of all blessing. True gratitude recognizes that “there is one God, the Father. All things are from Him” and that “there is one Lord, Jesus Christ. All things are through Him” (1 Corinthians 8:6).

A heart that is grateful—but not grateful to God—isn’t grateful in the right sort of way. True gratitude recognizes that God is the “You” we must thank.

MEDITATION

Are you grateful to God, or are you merely grateful? Do you recognize that all the blessings that come your way ultimately come from God through Jesus Christ?

GROW GRATEFUL 

Tell God what blessings you are grateful for today.