Monday Meditations - Gratitude

Gratitude

Gratitude is something we are not exactly full of these days. We would much rather show ungratefulness with all of our petty complaints. And what do we complain about? Big things? Sometimes. But more often than not we gripe about such minor issues like the temperature being too hot or too cold.

Have you ever known someone who complained about everything? Did/do you like to be around that person? The complaining person can be almost toxic. They bring us down and make us want to complain more.

There was one time I was going through the checkout at the store. The cashier complained about the company that employed her the entire time. Apparently she needed to be out of her apartment that day and wasn't allowed to take the day off. My cynical mind didn't want to hear her griping. I'm sure she had more than a couple hours' notice to vacate her apartment. As usual, my mouth was at work before my brain.

"You should be glad you have a job."

She was fairly silent after that.

At the time I had several friends who had been diligently looking for work and finding nothing. I felt she needed to show a little gratitude. (Isn't it funny how we can point out the faults in other people?)

My Blessings Book

Then there came a time I felt myself becoming so ungrateful. It is it said that knowing you have a problem is half the battle, and I realized I had a problem. To combat my complaining, I decided to start a Blessings Book. I had a small journal someone had given me that I had yet to put to use. I began writing down all the little (and big) blessings in my life. I jotted down when I missed an accident by one car. I wrote down the times I went to the store looking for something specific and found an awesome deal. I recorded the times God protected my family from catastrophic danger. These entries are not anything anyone else will ever read; they're just between God and me. 

You know what I noticed? The more blessings I wrote down, the more blessings I noticed. I was grateful for each one and wanted to make sure the Lord knew of my gratitude.

Sometimes we are the cause of what we complain about. Think about that. You know it's true.

Instead of complaining this week work a little harder at having an attitude of gratitude. (A song from my childhood just came to my mind! I'll have to go look that up.)

Want to start your own Blessings Book?