How do we put an attitude of gratitude into practice “for what we are about to receive?

Once the Master was at prayer. The disciples came up to him and said, “Sir, teach us how to pray.” This is how he taught them…

Two men were once walking through a field when they saw an angry bull. Instantly they made for the nearest fence with the bull in hot pursuit. It soon became evident to them that they were not going to make it so one man shouted to the other, “We’ve had it! Nothing can save us. Say a prayer. Quick!”

The other shouted back, “I’ve never prayed in my life and I don’t have a prayer for this occasion.”

“Never mind. The bull is catching up with us. Any prayer will do.”

“Well, I’ll say the one I remember my father used to say before meals: For what we are about to receive, Lord, make us truly grateful.”

Here are three simple suggestions for practicing an attitude of gratitude:

1. Speak your gratitude. When we say “thank you” we acknowledge to ourselves and to the people we say “thank you” to that we are grateful for what they have done for us. Thanking people who in some way serve us, gas station attendants, people who hold the door for us, cashiers, customer service providers, helps us not take for granted what we have been given and acknowledges the giver as someone who is important to our well-being.

2. Write your gratitude. Lately, I’ve been recording in my journal one thing about my day for which I am grateful. Sometimes when I sit down to write my gratitude nothing comes immediately to mind. But with just a few minutes of reflection I usually discover things I have taken for granted for which I am grateful, like being alive, my health, my safety.

3. Pay your gratitude forward. To express your gratitude for what you have received, give something to or do something for someone else. Paying our gratitude forward can start a chain reaction of gratitude that changes the world, one person at a time.

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity…. It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.” Melodie Beattie