Gratitude Again

It's Turkey day 2018 and I'm here on the Big Island of Hawaii with family.

 

This year we started the day with a full worship service. 

 

For the sermon I asked each member of the family to share a story of thanks. It was moving to here how parents, grandparents, and children (who are now adults) shared what was meaningful to each. And while this blog won't covered what everyone said, know that it is a health exercise to practice giving thanks again.

 

I'm typically a person who relishes stories, concepts and mining the scriptures to grow in the ways of God, so my sharing followed just that. I began with a story.

 

"Family," I said to them, "The place that we are renting has pictures of the Buddha. One of my favorite stories about him goes something link this":

 

Long ago, widow lost her only son. The pain she experienced from his death was unbearable. She wanted the child back. Someone suggested to her that the Buddha knew a means to bring back the dead child. She searched out and found him, begging him, "Please, if you able, tell me how to bring my dead son back to life." The Buddha told her that it could be done but only if should find a lotus seed from a family that had never experienced suffering."

And so, she began her quest.

For more than a year, the woman knocked on doors: Rich, poor and everything in-between. However, no matter where she went she could not find a home that was without suffering.

She returned to the Buddha and said: "Now I understand that no one escapes this life without suffering."

Indeed, we all have known suffering, but that, as I like to say, is not the only thing in the room. Many of us have also known joy, happiness, love, peace, etc. All these I chalk up to one word: Grace. 

Indeed, the reason for gratitude is because of what is called "The Circle of Grace." That circle begins like this: Grace begats gratitude and gratitude begats generosity and generosity begats grace. 

Far too often we focus only on our suffering forgetting that grace is all around us. When we realize what we have in God's grace it should move our hearts towards gratitude not entitlement. 

But it doesn't stop there. 

Gratitude should release us towards deeper and deeper generosity for what is thanks without expressions of gratitude?

Finally, our generosity opens up the possibility for others to experience grace, to know the goodness of God. Therefore real gratitude, as I see it, is a circle. 

Gratitude again and again!