Receiving All Things with Thankfulness
I came across this quote today and was struck by its' deeper meaning.
QUOTE (Doctrine and Covenants 78:19) |
"He who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious". |
I agree.
It seems that we "know" that trials will help us grow and are necessary but we sometimes complain when we have to go through them. After the fact, it seems easy to be thankful but is that because we can see the outcome?
We lost our house 5 years ago by a freak wind storm that had hurricane strength winds--not something we get in Alaska much! It left us homeless, me very pregnant in a high risk pregnancy and my husband stressing out. We were able to get through it (although there were some real hard times) and be thankful for whatever the Lord had in store for us. It was a much bigger blessing than what we lost.
I think along with this is all the things we don't realize we need to be thankful for because we take them for granted. Sometimes I see how some parents treat their children and it makes me really grateful for my parents.
I know a sister who used to live in our ward who sets an excellent example of this. She truly receives all things with thankfulness. If her car breaks down, she is grateful that at least she HAS a car. With every trial she faces she looks for how she can show gratitude to the Lord. She has many health problems, but shows gratitude that she has life. I have a ways to go on this principle. I am grateful for all the Lord has blessed me with. But sometimes, particularly when things are not going well, I can temporarily forget. I think one of the keys to showing our gratitude in everything is to always remember that everything is a gift from the Lord. We owe it all to Him. If life were easy and without trials we would stagnate and not grow. We would not progress. We would become complacent. I truly and grateful for the hard times as well as the good times because it is through our trials that we find growth and learning. I am especially grateful that the Lord has patience because sometimes I am slow to learn life's lessons.