Be Grateful For This Day
“Not everyone is given the chance to grow old. So appreciate and thank God for every single day of your life.” ~ Unknown
I know I have shared this before; but, it’s worth repeating. A part of my morning routine is setting up for my scheduled morning Masses. Each time I go to the tabernacle to put the key in the lock, I say, “Thank you, Lord, for another day of life.” When I say it, I really mean it. There are some days that I put the key in, am distracted, and forget to say the words. Halfway back to the altar, I stop, turn around, and apologize to the Lord for not thanking Him and then I thank Him for another day of life.
I really credit my mother for this attitude. She was instrumental in emphasizing the importance of being thankful. I know it was difficult for her. Raising four boys to be grateful can be a bit tough. I can remember many a reminder — “Don’t forget to say thank you.” “You forgot to say thank you.” “Say thank you.” — that my mother gave to me before the words came out on their own.
I have to admit that, once I started saying thank you, I felt better. I felt better about myself and better about the other person. I began to look for opportunities to say thank you and I still do to this day. If I leave a situation and realize that I did not take the time to thank someone, I often contact that person after the fact and tell them I was thankful.
Which brings us back to our quote for today: “Not everyone is given the chance to grow old. So appreciate and thank God for every single day of your life.” We all know that the life span for each person is very unique. Some live a long, long time (such as my grandmother who died at 102) and others live a brief time on this earth. Each day we awake, we should thank God for another day of life.
This is important for a couple of reasons. An attitude of thankfulness is something we should all embrace. Even more, thanking God helps us to keep our lives in perspective. It is God who is most important and we should never lose sight of that.
FAITH ACTION: Thank God for another day of life and make a conscious effort to be grateful for all that comes your way today.