The Gift of Gratitude
Of all the ways we could ever respond to God, gratitude might be the most practical, personally constructive, and important movement of our hearts.
When I worked at a parish, I was given a master key. It opened my door and all the other essential doors on the parish grounds, with the exception of the pastor’s office and a few other rooms. But the pastor had a “grand master” key that unlocked every door.
Every action we can take towards God is like a key that opens something up in our relationship with Him. A few movements unlock several doors for us. They are like the “master keys.”
An act of humility grounds us, puts us in our proper place before God, and allows us to be in a posture of receptivity, open to what He wants to give us.
An act of faith opens our minds and hearts to God, as we assent to His power and authority in our lives.
An act of hope helps us let go of what this world has to offer, disposing us to receive our fulfillment in Him.
An act of love allows us to give ourselves to God and abide with Him in the joyful communion for which we were made.
Each of these acts has their proper place and purpose, but gratitude always has a place. It is the only act that I have found that encompasses all of these, all at the same time. Gratitude to God is the “grand master” key. No matter what situation we find ourselves in, be it the heights of contemplation or the depths of desolation, gratitude will always unlock something for us. It can be easy for us to understand a reason to be grateful amidst good times, but I think the genius of gratitude reveals itself most clearly and profoundly in the moments of deepest struggle.
In these moments, gratitude to God is an act of humility. To be grateful implies a giver, someone that we are submitting to in order to receive what they have for us. It proclaims that we are not sufficient to meet our own needs.
Gratitude to God is an act of faith. It is a choice to believe that God is good, and He is providing for us here and now, even in the midst of many unknowns and things that are out of our control.
Gratitude to God is an act of hope. Be it dryness, darkness, emptiness, or any kind of personal poverty, when we can cry out from these places with gratitude, it is one of the purest prayers we can pray. When all seems to be going against us, gratitude becomes a profound act of hope in God. It fortifies and readies our hearts to receive more of the ineffable intimacy He wishes to give us. We are not depending on other things, just Him, and that has a way of stripping away the parts of us that unknowingly keep Him at bay. A grateful heart here professes that these purifications are not the end, that there is more to come.
Finally, gratitude to God is an act of love. Like humility, gratitude implies relationship—a good relationship—a giver and receiver. When we pray a prayer of gratitude amidst deep suffering, there tends to be an immediate entrustment of ourselves to God. When we have nothing left of ourselves, gratitude thrusts us into relationship with God, into Love itself. If we ponder all of this, it can amaze us how rich a simple and sincere “thank you” can be, especially from a place of deep suffering.
A simple and sincere prayer of gratitude can really shift things for us when we feel desolate. If we can pray like this from our struggles, I believe it is proof of a powerful presence of God within us. Only grace can lead us to thank God and mean it when our experience is one of deep lack or agony. Recall this passage from the end of Habakkuk:
“For though the fig tree does not blossom, and no fruit appears on the vine, though the yield of the olive fails and the terraces produce no nourishment, though the flocks disappear from the fold and there is no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord and exult in my saving God.” - Habakkuk 3:17-18
This man has nothing, and yet he still expresses gratitude to God. It is precisely his gratitude amidst his lack that proves the purity of his heart and prayer and allows us to see the depth of his humility, faith, hope, and love. He has nothing but God. Either he is insane as he prays this, or his experience of God’s fullness amidst his lack is so immense that, having nothing, what He has in God is better than if he had everything.
God has generously given to us, and He wants to give us more. As time goes on, I realize that what I used to think was me desiring too much from God was in fact me desiring too little—far too little. God is more generous than we can perceive. We just have a hard time receiving it because we constrict Him with our narrow faith, hope, and love. So let us open our minds and believe, open our hearts and receive, open our hands in praise, all with simple and heartfelt gratitude for what he is doing in our lives right now. He always desires to bless us more, and for that we can pray, “Thank you, Lord.”
