Gratitude: Duty or Blessing? (Part 1)

It seems to me," C.S. Lewis mused, "that we often, almost sulkily, reject the good that God offers us because, at the moment, we expected some other good…God shows us a facet of glory and we refuse to look at it because we are still looking for the old one...” (Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer)

  

The proverbial solution, of course, is to remember the good God has given us—to count our blessings and express gratitude for them.

"When sorrow and failure come to us," William George Jordan reminds us, "we regard them as misdirected packages that should be delivered elsewhere." Counting our blessings at such times can seem an onerous duty rather then a divine gift.  But is expressing gratitude just a duty, one of many commands of God?

“Health and happiness are what our Father in Heaven wants for us,” Harold B. Lee reminds us,  “and that is why He has given us commandments to keep, and not for any other reason.”

And Thomas S. Monson, in his keynote address “The Divine Gift of Gratitude,” assures us: “Sincerely giving thanks not only helps us recognize our blessings, but it also unlocks the doors of heaven and helps us feel God’s love.”

Health and Happiness…feeling God’s Love…what lovely gifts…but how is gratitude a path to them?

M. J. Ryan offers one explanation: “Gratitude creates happiness because it makes us feel full, complete; gratitude is the realization that we have everything we need, at least at the moment.” (Attitudes of Gratitude)

So how do we cultrivate gratitude when those "misdirected" packages arrive in our lives? After all, the post office of heaven does not accept returns.

"A prayerful life ,” Thomas S. Monson assures us, “is the key to possessing gratitude.”

As Shakespeare’s Henry VI implored:

“O Lord, that lends me life,

 Lend me a heart replete with thankfulness!”