Gratitude - A Call to Action

Eight Great Gratefuls by Nathan Bryce

What is Coveting?

If you believe that what you currently have is not enough and that you must get more, you might be guilty of coveting. When we choose to choose to covet, we are essentially confessing, “I love money, and the things it can buy. My goal in life is to become so rich that I can have whatever I want.”

Now it’s easy to justify this desire with the words, “And just think of all the good that I can do with this wealth. If I’m independently wealthy, I’ll be able to volunteer more, help out the poor and needy, and fund worthwhile endeavors. Someday. But right now, I really do need a better boat. And my family really deserves at least one really spectacular vacation.”

Financial wealth isn’t good or bad in and of itself, kind of like the Internet or nuclear technology. It is how it is used that’s good or bad. It’s how much we love it and worship it. It’s how much it gets in the way of the more important things of life, such as our family relationships, spiritual fulfillment, or emotional resilience.

What’s the Cure?

So, what’s the cure for this this greediness, this covetousness, this dysfunctional desiring disorder that damns our authentic happiness? Well, there’s many. But perhaps one that has been advocated for centuries by philosophers, poets, prophets, and preachers, is to learn how to be grateful for the things you currently have.

What is Gratitude?

Webster’s 1913 Dictionary calls gratitude, “The state of being grateful; of having a warm and friendly feeling toward a benefactor.” So, what are the characteristics of a grateful person? I’ve identified eight great grateful characteristics, although there are many more.

Number 1: Grateful People Say “Thank-you”

If you are grateful, you have a habit of saying “thanks” for just about everything you receive in life, even for something as simple as having a door held open for you, receiving a receipt from the cashier at the grocery store, or thanking your employer for continuing to pay you.?

“Good men and bad men differ radically. Bad men never appreciate kindness shown them, but wise men appreciate and are grateful. Wise men try to express their appreciation and gratitude by some return of kindness, not only to their benefactor, but to everyone else.” — Gautama Buddha

Number 2: Grateful People are Humble

A few years ago, I traveled to Nigeria on business, where I was able to meet a number of wonderful teachers and trainers from all over that country. One of the customs I was introduced to was the way some of the West African people say thank-you. They bow their heads and touch their foreheads to the palm of their hands. Sometimes they use one hand, or if they are truly thankful, both hands. In some villages, the people fall down to the ground and touch their forehead to the ground in front of the person to whom they are grateful. Or, they just sit on the ground in front of someone’s hut for hours or even days. In some cases, the thankful person will even offer to be that person’s servant for a time—doing whatever needs to be done, no matter how unpleasant it may be. Thus, a grateful person is a humble and submissive person.

Number 3: Grateful People Feel Indebted

A grateful person understands that he or she is a debtor. They owe their ease, comforts, conveniences, and liberties to other people. They know they owe more than they can possibly pay back. So they often feel a sense of obligation and indebtedness, which adds to their feelings of humility.?

In these days of social unrest and war, it doesn’t take us long to gratefully remember the people who are presently laboring to protect our way of life and enhance the way of life for others. We all are indebted to these great leaders and soldiers.

Number 4: Grateful People are Accountable

Grateful people recognize the need to account for their gifts, take care of that which they have been given, and utilize them properly. Their duty is to invest and multiply or magnify their talents and blessings and be profitable stewards.

Number 5: Grateful People Avoid Resentment

I think that an attitude of gratitude is the crucial difference between being a victim or a victor over the events of life. We cannot control what will happen to us in life. But we can control our response. When we face the inevitable tough times of life—and all of us do—we are free to choose our attitude.

One alternative is to choose the attitude of resentment—to decide to focus on the bad and ask angrily, “Why did this have to happen?” The other alternative is simply to choose to be grateful. This involves thinking through every facet of an event and asking, “What is there here to be thankful for, and what can I use amid all this wreckage to build a better future?”

Number 6: Grateful People Pass Along Gratitude

Remember the 1970’s shampoo commercial where Heather Locklear spouted the virtues of Fabergé Organics shampoo? She announced how great it was and then said “And I told two friends about it. Then they told two friends. And they told two friends. And so on. And so on. And so on...” Now a days, we call that “viral-marketing.”

Imagine what would happen if each of us showed an act of gratitude or did something nice towards two people today, and they both passed it along two others tomorrow, and so on, and so on. It would only take 34 days to do something nice to every person on the planet!

Someone who is truly grateful is not content just to receive, they feel compelled to pass along the gift.?One of the men I worked with in Africa was a leper. On our last day together, he shared his life story with me. When he was six years old, he contracted the leprosy bacteria, and was immediately kicked out of his village and sent to a leper colony in Cameroon—one that was established by Albert Schweitzer many years ago. There, he found a volunteer missionary, a teacher by profession. That teacher worked in that hot and humid colony for more than 20 years teaching its inmates how to read and write and better themselves—even though some of them might never leave the miserably colony. Well, to make a long story short, this boy eventually recovered as a young adult, though he was deeply scarred and permanently disfigured. But so thankful was he for his teacher, that he immediately went into the teaching profession and from that day forward, for the past 40 years, he refuses to be called by his own name. He simply wants to be called, “Teacher.” All he wanted to do was pass along the gift he had been given. We need more people like him.

Number 7: Grateful People are Charitable

In Africa, I was also able to witness with my own eyes the immense needs of others. I can’t express to you the feelings that I had as I saw thousands upon thousands of emaciated and maimed men, women, and children lining the streets, desperately begging for help.

As we look at the immense needs of others, we certainly become grateful for the things we already have and often take for granted. We have far more than we deserve, I’m afraid. And I’m convinced that one of our greatest challenges is to do something with these gifts and improve the lives of others.

It seems to me that grateful people live simply so that other, less fortunate people, can simply live.

Number 8: Grateful People Are Motivated to Act

There’s a mighty large gap between our current state of affairs in the world and the lofty idealized utopia where everyone has all their needs met and lives in harmony with each other. If we want to live in a better world, at least one that is better for those near us, we need to intensely work to create that world. This requires a lot of effort and action, as well as self-sacrifice and commitment. Seek out like-minded individuals who can help shoulder this burden and re-kindle your fire when it grows dim. Hanging around grateful people will help you stay motivated to act in positive, constructive ways.

Summary

In summary, gratitude is much more than saying, “Thanks.” It is much more than an expression. It is much more than a passing mood or attitude. It is a way of life. It is a life-style choice. It is a philosophy that compels us to action. It is a call to action.