Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
-Matthew 6:26, NKJV
The discipline of gratitude is the secret to an abundant life. Of this, I am convinced.
Grateful people do not live as if their well-being is determined by circumstances. The “water” of gratefulness sustains them through even the longest “drought” of life including even their transition out of this world (I’ve seen this).
Yet it is a discipline.
I do not think it is a mistake that we are commanded to be thankful (e.g. Psalm 107:1, I Thessalonians 5:18, etc). It is a choice.
Like all disciplines, we get better at it was we exercise our “will” muscles in choosing what God has instructed us to do–namely, to give Him thanks. We build our “thankfulness” muscles by exercising them.
Today, I am thankful for my day job. I am grateful for my wife and daughter. Also, I give thanks to God for the parrots He has given us as pets. They are reminders of this truth in Matthew 6:26…
