Be Grateful to God

With Thanksgiving around the corner, the topic of gratitude has been on my mind a lot lately. Being grateful doesn’t just mean saying “thank you” at the proper time. In a deeper sense, gratitude is kneeling down before God Almighty and thanking Him for all the blessings He has bestowed upon us. Through things we can see and things we cannot see, God has truly blessed us and helped us.

A recent parable I heard at Mass was the parable of the Ten Lepers, which teaches us about gratitude. Here is a reminder of the encounter.

“As he continued his journey to Jerusalem, he traveled through Samaria and Galilee. As he was entering a village, ten lepers met (him). They stood at a distance from him and raised their voice, saying, “Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!” And when he saw them, he said, “Go show yourselves to the priests.” As they were going they were cleansed. And one of them, realizing he had been healed, returned, glorifying God in a loud voice; and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him. He was a Samaritan. Jesus said in reply, “Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine? Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?” Then he said to him, “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.” (Luke 17: 11-19)

This parable is one example of how God shows forth His Goodness with miracles every day, but not everyone has the heart to thank Him for it. Express your love for God through gratitude.

Gratitude for Blessings

One practice you can do to keep being grateful is to have a “blessings jar.” You can write down a blessing each day and put it in a jar. At the end of the year, you read all your blessings, reminiscing about what a beautiful year it has been and thanking God for the growth, graces, and miracles that happened during that year.

Another practice you can do that I learned from a priest is that any time you are about to complain, think of five things you are grateful for. This stuck with me. It has truly helped me to be more aware of what I have and to thank God for those things more frequently.

Even just the basic necessities of life like clean water, food, and a warm bed are privileges that are not available to everyone. A good practice is to pray for the people who go without these items and for people who are lonely, hurt, or forgotten. God commands us to love our neighbor, and we do this by realizing what they need.

Another way to be grateful is to spend your time wisely. Time is such a  precious gift from God that we can spend serving Him and His church. So, as we wake up every morning, let us keep in perspective how and where we are going to spend our time.

Gratitude for Time

A Sacred Scripture quote that teaches us about spending time wisely is listed below.

“Watch carefully then how you live, not as foolish persons but as wise, making the most of the opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore, do not continue in ignorance, but try to understand what is the will of the Lord. And do not get drunk on wine, in which lies debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another (in) psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and playing to the Lord in your hearts, giving thanks always and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father.” (Ephesians 5: 15-20)

Gratitude for the Eucharist

As a practicing Catholic, I cannot write an article about gratitude without talking about the Eucharist. The word Eucharist means thanksgiving. It is in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass where Jesus nourishes our souls with His Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity. We hunger for Our Lord Jesus Christ, and Jesus willingly gives Himself to us in every Eucharist. It is beautiful how God loves His Church in this way.

Here are a few quotes about the Eucharist from Saint John Vianney that have really stood out to me.

“When we leave the holy banquet of Communion, we are as happy as the wise men would have been if they could have carried away the Infant Jesus.”

“There is nothing so great as the Eucharist. If God had something more precious, He would have given it to us.”

“We should consider these moments before the Blessed Sacrament as the happiest of our lives.”

In short, there are three things I want you to take away from this article. The first is that gratitude is a heartfelt feeling and action of thanking the Lord for all He has done for You. Second, be thankful for what you have, but also pray for those without. Last of all and most importantly, the Eucharist is the greatest gift. Never stop thanking Jesus for giving Himself to you.