Gratitude

The more we recognize and are grateful to God for his gifts, the more he will bless us.

Scripture tells us, "Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, his mercy endures forever (Ps 118:1)." Often times we can get so caught up with our problems and concerns that we forget to give thanks to the Lord for all his blessings. The Scripture passage of Jesus healing the ten lepers teaches us about the value of thanksgiving.  Ten lepers were healed, yet only one came back to Jesus to thank him. Jesus replied, "Ten were cleansed were they not? Where are the other nine? Has not but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God (Lk 17:17-18)?" Jesus was deeply disappointed that the other nine never returned to give thanks for what he did for them.

Then Jesus said the one, "Stand up and go; your faith has saved you." Commentators have interpreted Jesus' statement to mean that because the foreigner returned to give thanks, he has received the additional gift of eternal salvation. Because of his expression of gratitude and faith, he has received the greatest gift of all - eternal life!

It is clear that thanksgiving is just, proper and pleasing to God. At Mass, during the Preface, the priest leads the congregation in  praying, "It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation, always and everywhere to give you thanks, Lord, Holy Father, almighty and eternal God." Our salvation is connected with our expression of gratitude to God.  Thanksgiving contributes to the graces of salvation. 

Gratitude is a permanent disposition of the Blessed Virgin Mary.  She exclaims to Elizabeth, "...For he has looked with favor on his lowly servant. From this day all generations will call me blessed, the almighty has done great things for me; and Holy is his name." Mary is forever grateful to the Lord for all the blessings that she has received from him.  

When St. Catherine of Siena asked God the Father how she can grow in purity, He answered, "Unite yourself to me with loving affection, keeping in mind the blessings you have received from me."  Indeed, keeping in mind our blessings, help us to unite ourselves to God in love. But unfortunately, many of us do not even recognize our blessings, or we fail to give thanks to God, or we tend to forget them quickly.

Therefore, it is important for us to call to mind our blessings. One way to help us do this is the Examen prayer at the end of the day.  Before I go to bed, I look back on my day, I ask the Holy Spirit to help me see his gifts throughout the day and see where I failed to respond. Then as I go through the day, I am able to see the many graces that I received and I give thanks to the Lord for them.  I also ask for forgiveness for the times I failed to respond to them. Then I ask God to be with me the next day. Doing the Examen prayer only takes a few minutes, but it helps us to see God's gifts and give him thanks. It helps us to cultivate the habit of gratitude.  And this in turn will merit us more graces.  The more we acknowledge and are grateful for God's gifts, the more he will lavish his graces upon us.