Thankfulness
A
grateful heart is the beginning of greatness. It is an expression of
humility. It is a foundation for the development of such virtues as
prayer, faith, courage, contentment, happiness, love and well-being.
James
E. Faust
We
will, next week, celebrate Thanksgiving in the USA. This is a good
time to contemplate gratitude as a spiritual practice. I understand
that there are situations and circumstances in this world where
gratitude is not the first thing that comes to mind when one opens
one's eyes in the morning. There are times in the life of each and
every one of us when thankfulness is hard to come by—but that
should not stop us from trying. Not in the interest of appearing
pious, but in the interest of feeling content.
In
my mind, gratitude and humility are kindred spirits. It is difficult
to separate them. Humility of the honest sort, is a source of
grounding; it brings us home to our selves. In the words of Thomas
Merton, “Pride makes us artificial and humility makes us real.”
I'm not talking about false humility here; the kind that says, “I'm
not worthy,” or, “I'm just here to serve.” That is actually ego
dressed up in sheep's clothing. I'm talking about an honest appraisal
of oneself, an understanding of one's strengths and weaknesses, of
one's light and darkness. Once there, we can approach gratitude with
sincerity.
The
test of any spiritual practice is maintaining it in the face of
adversity or advantage. We are easily thrown off balance by either.
Our humility is challenged when we find ourselves in a winning
position, and our gratefulness is at risk when we are losing. The
goal is to treat both circumstances as equal, neither good nor bad,
but as opportunities to practice. It's not easy.
As
we head into Thanksgiving week, take some time to assess: What am I
most grateful for today, and how might I better practice humility?
In
the Spirit,
Jane
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