Just Say “Thank You”

Within our fallen soul, ingratitude is a deeply buried seed. If we have plenty, we want more. If we have daily bread, we want it for the next twenty years, all stored up, on pretty plates that we prefer. Curated consumerism is the dissatisfied dead-end of our ingratitude – life on our terms, a buffet with only our favorite dishes, and more of the same tomorrow.

Yet, when it comes to “thank you,” the soul’s throat is as dry as dust. What does it take for the soul to feel and the lips to utter a clear and sincere “thank you?” A conviction that we deserve nothing good from anyone. If we receive one birthday present our entire lives, one hour of good health, it is more than we have a right to expect.

We first learn gratitude by being honest with ourselves. We have offended our Father, provoked him, and forfeited any claim upon his mercy. In amazing love He sent his Son to bear the judgment for our discontent and ingratitude. Ingratitude is not our only sin, but it is a core sin. Ingratitude says to the Lord: “I do not like what you are doing, what you are giving or not giving to me. I cannot willingly submit to your providence in my life. This is too much, too hard. I deserve more, better, shinier, easier. It was not supposed to be like this. I thought you would treat me better if I served you.”

The Father does not leave us mired in the pit of ingratitude. The Holy Spirit brings every child of God before the cross. There we learn what we truly deserve – the wrath and curse of God. As we learn in the school of the cross, we are altered. Any good we have – anything – belongs to Jesus Christ. He deserves all the good, all the thanks. All the good is our lives has his signature in blood upon it.

The cross also teaches gratitude in the other direction – not only how to receive the good but also to respond to the hard.  Our Lord’s thankful spirit is best seen in the light of his willingness to bear our judgment. He did not grumble, go through life angry, or tell everyone what he was doing for them. In quiet love and thankfulness to his Father, He was willing and thankful to be humiliated, struck down, and buried in the ground, in order to lift us up to heaven, spare us, and exalt us.

His life and sacrifice – trusted and imitated – help us to say “thank you” to others. They may not do exactly what we would like. The gift of a Christmas sweater may make us cringe, but in Christ we can receive even an unwanted gift with gratitude. Thank you for thinking of me. We have forgotten that giving and receiving are streams of kindness flowing from the cross. We are forever marked by his sacrifice, and therefore by thankfulness to others. When you want to complain, just say “thank you” – and ask the Lord to give you grace to mean it.

But what about the more fundamental issues of our attitude before God with his hard providences in our lives. Let us be honest. Many of us live with a bit of a chip on our shoulder toward him. Why do we complain? Why do we not appreciate his providences, his government of our lives, his gifts of affliction, or his withholding of gifts we want? We think we deserve something more, something better – or do not deserve this trial or cross. We are not thankful. Our attitude toward life shows our attitude toward the Lord – thankful or a little bit peeved.

We must learn to sing: “whatever my God ordains is right.” Do we believe this? That his plan is right and good; thankfulness is not gritting one’s teeth and bearing the trial  because it is unavoidable, but because our Father is righteous. The pain, the loss, the weakness, the betrayal, the heavy work load, the lighter work load – my Father is righteous. Teach me, Father, to submit to your righteousness and to give you thanks, for you are good.