A Grateful Heart

“Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand”. (Psalm 73: 23)

Many saints who enjoyed the goodness of the Heavenly Father in their personal life have experienced that He is such a loving Lord and takes care of his children each and every moment in our life. However, some times, especially when they have to go through trials and tribulations, they may feel that they are alone and abandoned by the Lord. Even King David who had always experienced the comforting presence of the omnipresent and omnipotent God fell into the trap of doubting God. In Psalm 13 : 1, he laments, “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?”

The author of the best seller, Roots, Alex Haley had an unusual picture hanging on his office wall. It was the picture of a turtle on top of a fence post. Once one of his friends asked him-

“Why is this strange picture on your wall?”

Alex Haley said after a few moments of silence-

“Every time I write something significant, every time I read my words, and think that they are wonderful and to begin to think proud of myself, I look at the picture of the turtle on top of the fence post. That picture reminds me that the turtle didn’t get there on its own. It had help”.

Even when sitting on the golden throne of Israel, wearing the golden crown on his head, the symbolic expression of victory and holding the golden scepter, the symbol of royal authority, King David says with a grateful heart. “Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits” (Psalm 103 : 2)

If we have to give thanks to the Lord, we should have the willingness to spare a few moments to look back and remember the miraculous ways the Lord had led us in the past. Just ask us, “Where I have started my life and where I have reached at this moment?” None of us can answer this question without tearful eyes, for we know from the depth of our heart that the blessings we are enjoying in our daily life is only by His grace and we don’t deserve it.

Secondly, if we have to remember the heavenly blessings we enjoy each and every day, we have to spare a few moments from our hectic schedules to excavate the golden memories buried in the tombs of the past. As long as time is much more precious than money, only a person with a grateful heart would be willing to spare those valuable moments.

When somebody does something good in our life, a gentleman living in a sophisticated society would say at least a ‘thank you’. Later, he may forget about the incident. However, if a person risks his life to save a stranger or his enemy from some kind of danger or disaster, walking away by just uttering casually a ‘thank you’ and forgetting about incident is the height of ungratefulness.

Unfortunately, sometimes we easily forget the goodness of the Lord. Some of the believers are selfish to such an extent that their ungrateful attitude breaks the heart of the Lord. They are confined to the small circle of their families. The only thoughts in their life are focused on their prosperity and their bright future. Their only concentration is on how to solve their problems and how they can become rich instantly. They live as if they are the only one existing on the surface of this planet. Such believers regularly forget the blessings of the Lord and remember Him only when they are in need. They kneel down to pray only when there is an emergency in their life. Whenever they have to undergo bitter experiences in their spiritual journey, they get upset and irritated and sometimes go to the extreme extend of denying the Lord like Peter.

For such so-called believers, God is a remote-controlled robot, existing only to bless them, protect them from all their dangers and solve all their problems within seconds. If there is anybody who considers God as a supreme being existing only to shower worldly blessings on him/her, he or she has formulated a wrong theory or philosophy that doesn’t match at all with the truths recorded in the word of God. Instead of their futile efforts to control God, he or she should submit to the perfect will of God.

Whether we are prospering or undergoing agonies in our lives, realize the fact that we are not alone in our spiritual journey. Our loving Lord is always with us. Even when walking through the fierce shadows of death, King David says with a grateful heart, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me” (Psalm 23 : 4).