Sunday Meditation: The Gratitude Perspective

We had visiting priest from India today who gave the homily on gratitude. He told an amusing story about a man who lived with nine other men in a crowded little hovel. He was miserable because the house was so crowded and noisy. He couldn't get any sleep and hated his life. So he went to see a wise man about his miserable existence hoping to get some relief. The wise man told him to get a goat and take it into the house to live with them and come back to see him in a week. The man expressed doubt, but was told to just do it. So he brought the goat to live with himself and the other nine men. It was not a match made in heaven.

When he came back the next week, the wise men asked him how things were. Worse than ever, the man told him. It was noisier and he was getting even less sleep than before and everyone was arguing and fighting. (Think of the bleating goat, its mess and how it was butting the men and nibbling everything in sight, not to mention the smells!) Things were miserable! The wise man told him to get rid of the goat and come back the next week. When the man arrived the next week, the wise man noticed a change in his attitude He had a spring in his step and a smile on his face. The wise man asked how things were going and the man told him everything was wonderful. Everyone was getting along and they were all happy. He was finally getting a good night's sleep. He thanked the wise man for his help. (Presumably the goat was happy too.)

The situation of the men was the same as at the start of the story, but something had changed -- primarily their way of looking at the situation. It wasn't really so bad after all. They were particularly thankful that the goat was gone.

What did I get from that story? The fact that we often complain about things and only look at them differently when a goat enters the picture to stir things up. Perhaps the men all worked together to clean up after they got rid of the goat. Perhaps they laughed about all the goat's crazy antics (like I laugh about my chickens). Whatever brought about the change, they learned to be grateful for their situation as it was.

Gratitude offers the catalyst for changing our attitude about life. Believe it or not, we are called to thank God, not just in good times, but in "bad." Everything that happens is in God's Providence. That means there really are no "bad" times in the spiritual sense. Every challenge, every suffering, every setback is an opportunity to be united more closely to the Man of Sorrows. And often, it's our challenges and sufferings that become our greatest blessings.

Can you think of a sorrow in your life that became a great blessing? 

When I had cancer at age 39 I was terrified. It seemed like the worst catastrophe of my life. I had five children, the youngest only three. But as I dealt with my fears, I realized that no matter what happened, whether I lived or died, I was in God's hands and all would be well. That's when I learned that I really could say and mean it -- "My Jesus, I trust in You." 

As St. Paul says, we see through a glass darkly. We don't know why God allows tragedies in our lives: the untimely death of loved ones, loss of a job, serious illness, etc. But He has His reasons and they always have their origin in His love for us.

Whatever God gives us, may we always say, "Thank You, Lord. Blessed be Your name in all the earth."