I can remember the day, several years ago, when from watching a simple little children’s program on giving thanks that I was suddenly struck by how much of an ungrateful wretch I was (am)–how I had spent my days grumbling and unhappy over what I felt I lacked rather than noticing and giving thanks for the great abundant riches that God had bestowed on me.

Ungratefulness is a form of spiritual ‘Celiacs disease’–a disease where one can eat and eat but because of a problem in digestion due to a reaction to gluten, cannot absorb the nutrients–so one in effect starves even though one has plenty of good things to eat.

Why I am still so ungrateful? These days it is mostly due to mindlessness, distraction and busyness. Everyday I am like these nine lepers, rushing around without stopping to pray and give thanks. Everyday, I cram food in my mouth without stopping to think about the awesome blessing of having food in such abundance and so easily available that eating is almost as easy as breathing. This is not the way things are in most of the world or throughout most of human history—and I the mindless ingrate receive this great blessing, too often, without thought or thanksgiving.

And part of the problem, too, is that until we start to give to others, we don’t appreciate what is given to us. (And when we do begin to truly appreciate what is given to us, it makes us desire to give to others.) I have come to understand and accept that until my children either become parents themselves or, in some other way, begin to live sacrificially for someone outside of themselves, they will not be able to truly appreciate and give thanks for the sacrifices their father and I have made for them. Likewise, until I become more like my Heavenly Father, I cannot truly appreciate what He has done for me, directly and through others.

I do try to remember to give thanks, but I am sure that more than 9 times out of 10, I run off like these foolish lepers and forget to give thanks. Often I forget because I am busy and distracted by my problems. But, like these lepers, sometimes I forget to say thanks to the Giver because I’m distracted by the gift! And, the irony is, that I am so clueless and blind that I don’t realize that both the problems and the ‘gifts’, the lack and the abundance, the painful experiences, as well as the joyful, are all blessed gifts for which I should be grateful to God. “In EVERYTHING give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” 1Thessalonians 5:18 I haven’t even yet begun to remember to say thanks for the obvious great blessings in my life, much less recognize and say thanks continuously for the things that I don’t want or like. The bitter tasting food in my life has as much (usually more) nutritional value to me as the sweet things and yet I cannot experience the joys of suffering because my spiritually sick ‘gut’ cannot give appreciate and give thanks and thus ‘absorb’ the benefits of ALL the good things, sweet or bitter, that God is bringing to me in my life.

Pray for me, Father, that the Lord will have mercy on my sick soul and heal me so that one day I can truly know that everything comes to me from His hand and remember to say ‘Thank You’ for it all.

We are all lepers in away. But we are often in a worse state because those evangelical lepers realized how ill they are, and also they know to Whom to apply for cleansing. As for us, we often do not even suspect in what a danger we are, how jeopardized our state is, how unclean we are. Due to this we do not have their anxiety for treatment. Often we, even realizing that something is wrong, are not hasty enough to apply to God for cleansing. Or apply to Him, but somehow do not strive to improve something in ourselves. We turn God into a bureau of good services, asking Him constantly for something to “give” us. And He gives us more than we expect, being very patient with us, hoping for our improvement…but we do not tend to please Him. We forget or try to avoid the thought – that He can give us much, but He cannot save us without our participation in our salvation. That we are given from Him, among His other gifts, a free will, and are free to direct it either to salvation, or…

Our habit of taking His blessings for granted leads to the fact that even if He performs a tremendous wonder on us – like healing our wounds, treating our illness, we are not grateful to Him. Not only in our hearts, but just in mere words. It’s often like in our life we treat people – there are very kind people among us, who constantly stretch us a helpful hand, who do their utmost to comfort us, take care of us, feel sympathy for us. And we take it for granted. We apply to them every time, but we rarely bother ourselves asking how they are, whether they need our help, or just listen to them patiently. We bring them our problems, without showing any interest in theirs. And soon, having got accustomed to their generosity & constant help, we demand it every time, and take much offense if only once they are unable to provide it! Even less grateful we are to God, as we often even do not notice how much He had done for us…We should keep it in mind that all help & encouragement we receive from people, is done on God’s will. He destined those people to help us, but it’s His invisible hands support us every time when this happens.

Only faith & gratitude are capable of restoring the disrupted link between us & God. Unless we do not have them, we are separated. We impede God’s grace to act on us. We all need cleansing. As we are unclean; we are dirty because of our sins & passions.

If a person really remembers God, He feels gratitude. Gratitude accompanies our prayer in this case, makes it warm & lively.

I never felt I had enough gratitude – either to God, or to people that surround me. This is one of my wounds, this is the dirt that I hope will be cleansed by God. Some day. And – gratitude is what makes us happy here. As if we cease complaining of what we don’t have and start giving thanks for what we have, we’ll find out how rich we are, how much we have, and how much we still are to do to deserve all this, to be worthy of Heaven.