Lack of Gratitude

Aunt Sue used to say, "My name's Little Jimmie; I'll take all ya gimme."  I didn't have a clue who Little Jimmie was or what it was he wanted!  I remember when my boys were little, my buggy could be filled with their favorite cereal (determined solely by which box had the best toy) yet it was a significant miracle if I got through checkout without candy & drinks. I reckon Aunt Sue knew "Little Jimmie" real good!

Sadly, gratitude is absent in many Christian lives.  The word "thanks" appears about 100 times in the Bible, and with almost every occurrence appears a form of the word "give." Now, "give" is almost always a verb with one noun exception: "the elasticity of something that can be stretched and returns to its original length." How interesting both verb and noun relate to our gratitude to God.  To give is to transfer possession, to bestow, to convey, to dedicate, to utter, to deliver, to show. S-t-r-e-t-c-h our thankfulness, bounce back, then ... yes, start all over again! Just like a piece of elastic -- that never wears out. Look around right now and consider everything you seek and how all is from God. The Psalmist wrote, "Surely the righteous shall give thanks ... " In other words, if God's own children aren't grateful, who will be!

Dear Lord,

Make my life an offering of thankfulness, and create in me a genuine attitude of gratitude for Your eternal and boundless goodness in my life. In Jesus' Name, Amen.