Hales - Gratitude for the Goodness of God - April 1992

Elder Hales teaches us about gratitude.  He provides multiple examples from the life of the Savior where great things occurred and the Savior immediately expressed his appreciation to the Father for those experiences.  He encourages us to have a similar appreciation for the blessings in our lives.  He starts by telling us that he recently suffered a heart attack and the lesson he learned from that experience.

• Throughout that experience, there is one particular feeling that began inside of me, almost immediately, that intensified as time went on and became overpowering during my illness, during my recovery, and remains with me still. I became overwhelmed with a feeling of deep gratitude for the goodness of God.
• My deepest gratitude is for the atoning sacrifice of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. The Atonement is the foundation upon which all gospel truths reside.

He says that our actions, specifically our obedience to the commandments is an expression of love and gratitude towards the Savior.

• Our obedience to the laws, ordinances, and commandments is the greatest expression of love and gratitude that we can bestow upon him.
• Gratitude is also the foundation upon which repentance is built. The Atonement brought mercy through repentance to balance justice. How thankful I am for the doctrine of repentance. Repentance is essential to salvation. We are mortal—we are not perfect—we will make mistakes. When we make mistakes and do not repent, we suffer.

He says that gratitude to the Father and the Son lead us to repentance and an acceptance that They forgive us and are good to us.

• The point I would like to make is that when we express thankfulness to God and to his Son, Jesus Christ, we base our faith and repentance upon their forgiveness and their goodness.

Elder Hales shares that the sacrament is a great time for us to express our thanks to God.

• Like the Savior, it is important for each of us to prepare ourselves to give thanks for the atoning sacrifice each week as we partake of the sacrament.

Prayer is a vital part of gratitude.  Communication with God brings us humility and shows our dependence upon the Father and Son in our everyday lives.

• Prayer is an essential part of conveying appreciation to our Heavenly Father. He awaits our expressions of gratefulness each morning and night in sincere, simple prayer from our hearts for our many blessings, gifts, and talents.
• Through expression of prayerful gratitude and thanksgiving, we show our dependence upon a higher source of wisdom and knowledge—God the Father and his Son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We are taught to “live in thanksgiving daily.”

He ends with several statements about gratitude.  These statements clearly detail how we should view gratitude and our relationship with God.

• Gratitude is a state of appreciation, an act of thanksgiving, which causes us to be humble because we recognize an act of kindness, service, or caring from someone else which lifts us and strengthens us.
• Ingratitude is the attitude of being unaware or not recognizing when someone has assisted us or helped us or, even worse, when we know we have been helped and have not given thanks privately or publicly.
• In some quiet way, the expression and feelings of gratitude have a wonderful cleansing or healing nature. Gratitude brings warmth to the giver and the receiver alike.
• Gratitude expressed to our Heavenly Father in prayer for what we have brings a calming peace—a peace which allows us to not canker our souls for what we don’t have. Gratitude brings a peace that helps us overcome the pain of adversity and failure. Gratitude on a daily basis means we express appreciation for what we have now without qualification for what we had in the past or desire in the future. A recognition of and appreciation for our gifts and talents which have been given also allows us to acknowledge the need for help and assistance from the gifts and talents possessed by others.

I believe that gratitude is what is missing in the world today.  When we fail to express appreciation for the blessings we have in our lives, or we fail to recognize the course of our blessings, we miss out on building a strong relationship with God.  Gratitude builds a stronger relationship with God as we recognize that He is the source of true happiness in our lives.  How grateful I am that we are taught how to give thanks through prayer since I was a young child.  That simple teaching has helped me to keep in mind throughout my life, where my happiness originates from and who I owe my thanks to for the great blessings in my life.