"The Divine Gift of Gratitude"

I recently found, and gave a talk about, a wonderful address from President Thomas S. Monson called The Divine Gift of Gratitude.

When many people think of gratitude they think simply of giving thanks. But I have found gratitude has alot more power than that.

President Monson said,
"Sincerely giving thanks not only helps us recognize our blessings, but it also unlocks the doors of heaven and helps us feel God’s love."

Who doesn't want to feel God's love? It makes us happy.

When you are grateful you feel happier. I know I do. This is because when you are grateful you are thinking of others and what they do for you, and not about yourself and what you need or lack. You cannot be mean-spirited or negative if you are grateful.

"We have all experienced times when our focus is on what we lack rather than on our blessings...[However,] We can lift ourselves and others as well when we refuse to remain in the realm of negative thought and cultivate within our hearts an attitude of gratitude..How can we cultivate within our hearts an attitude of gratitude? ...a prayerful life is the key."

Why? i think it is because in our prayers we are taught to give thanks. You can't do that very well if you do not recognize things to be thankful for. So if you are trying to pray sincerely to your Heavenly Father, you are forced to think about your blessings.

"A grateful heart, then, comes through expressing gratitude to our Heavenly Father for His blessings and to those around us for all that they bring into our lives. This requires conscious effort—at least until we have truly learned and cultivated an attitude of gratitude. Often we feel grateful and intend to express our thanks but forget to do so or just don’t get around to it. Someone has said that 'feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it'"

Practice being grateful! I takes conscious effort until it becomes a habit. Thank people for anything and everything - no matter how simple.

This is my favorite quote from the entire talk, it is so beautiful -

"To express gratitude is gracious and honorable, to enact gratitude is generous and noble, but to live with gratitude ever in our hearts is to touch heaven."

To live with gratitude ever in our hearts is to touch heaven....how wonderful =]