#3. Live a Life of Gratitude

There is perhaps no other attitude that has the power to transform or re-orientate ourselves than gratitude. Its amazing what an attitude check can do amidst seasons of confusion, boredom, or bitterness. Entitlement is the greatest social and spiritual ill of our times. We believe that as long as we work hard, play by the rules, we are entitled to life’s benefits. Although it is always important to work hard and play by the rules, the expectations and demands we make on ourselves, others, and ultimately God are a set up for disappointment.

Gratefulness reminds us that all that we enjoy in this life is grace – unmerited, undeserved favor. It is easily for me to believe that all the good things in my life – my career, opportunity, my beautiful family, my house, my stuff, even my desire to love and follow Him is all a result of wise planning or decisions. A heart of gratitude reminds me that all of it – the breath in my lungs and blood coursing through my veins – are all a gift from God.

Oftentimes, I find myself looking out a taxi window, and looking at the faces and places here and imagine “what if.” What if my family never had the chance to emigrate to America? What if we had stayed in the Philippines? What if I never had the chance to go to college? What if my diet contained food staples that inadequately would provide the nutrition that my body needed? What if I had to live on less than $5 dollars a day? What if I was born into a broken or abusive home? What if I was born into a family that did not know Christ? What if I was born into a large family and my purpose was to eke out a living to support them?

Let’s not be fooled – we had absolutely nothing to do with whom and where we were born into. If you think about that for a second and then imagine all the other people, locations, and situations in this world, you cannot but help be filled with gratitude.

So I challenge each of my Fil-Am friends to go through the mental and soul-directing exercise of asking yourself “What if?” Then look at your life and thank God for all of it.