In the letter to the Ephesians, Saint Paul gives a very specific instruction: “Be filled with the Spirit… giving thanks always and for everything.” (5:19-20) Here are two simple ways to put this into practice, and change your life and life of those around you.
One is to start a gratitude journal. Just recently, four of my spiritual directees had mentioned the benefits of keeping a gratitude journal. Each day they write down five or so specific things for which they are grateful. They each said it was having a profound impact on their spiritual life. One even invited his spouse to join him in the activity before their evening meal. It’s a simple act but reaping huge benefits.
Studies show that people who intentionally identify the things for which they are grateful are the happiest and healthiest. Gratitude is also the key to a deeper, richer spiritual life and relationship with God.
St. Ambrose built upon Saint Paul’s exhortation to ‘give thanks always’ and said: “No duty is more urgent than that of returning thanks.” Imagine out of all the ‘duties’ we perceive a Christian to have, one of the Church Fathers, said giving thanks is the greatest.
The second way to put this into practice is to properly express your gratitude to another person. Instead of just saying “Thanks”, or “Thanks for all you do,” or “I am so very thankful for you,” offer what I call a “Power Thank You”.
A Power Thank-You has three basic parts:
- Thank the person for some specific act.
- Acknowledge the effort the other person took to do this particular action.
- Tell the person the difference that his/her act made to you.
I preached this message in a homily a while back. In the homily, I gave the congregation a Power Thank You. It went like this:
- Something specific: “Thank you for coming to Mass today.”
- Acknowledge the effort: “I know it is sometimes difficult to break away from what you’re doing and get ready, especially on this cold and rainy day.”
- What difference this made to me: “But when I see you here, I feel complete. We are part of the same church family, and I love reconnecting each week.”
With gratitude, you have the power to change the world. It starts by not looking at all that is wrong with your life and with the world around you, but by looking at all that is right, beautiful, wholesome, graced, inspired, and sent from God.
This week, “give thanks always for everything”. Consider starting your gratitude journal, and find someone to give a “Power Thank-You”.
Thank you for reading this far in my reflection. I know it’s sometimes a struggle to sort through the avalanche of emails. I am delighted you found mine and honored to be a part of your spiritual life.
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