Connecting Point: Cultivating Grace

I hope you had a great time with your family and friends this

Thanksgiving. Traditions comprise a large portion of our daily lives, many without much thought or effort. Certainly, Thanksgiving dinners involve much effort, but I’m referring more to our attitude or disposition. Are we motivated by genuine gratitude, or do we pass out thanks carelessly? Most of us say “thank you” without much thought or emotion. It’s

customary to thank the waitress when she brings the meal to the table. Are we thankful when the wait is long for that meal? Likewise, I can be polite by saying thank you to the business owner when purchasing a product, then walking out the door with a mumble on my lips for the latest price increase. Truthfully, both responses can be initiated without true appreciation. Gratitude, on the other hand, is all about attitude.

How about we cultivate thanks into long-lasting gratitude? The past couple of years have been quite demanding, even trying. Poor attitudes fill the air. If we are not careful we too can join in the negativism. The Bible points us in the opposite direction.

“Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and

admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him,” (Colossians 3:16-17). As Christians we stand for something significant, we represent Jesus.

Recently I discovered in Colossians 3 that some meaning is lost in the English translation from the original Greek. We assume gratitude and thanks for being one and the same when they are not. “Thanks” in Greek is eucharistountes, which could literally be translated as “good grace” and means to acknowledge God’s good grace or to be thankful. In Greek “gratitude” is chariti, which literally translates as “extending favor towards” and means giving grace, favor, gratitude, or kindness. Throughout the N.T. chariti is most often translated as grace. Notice the difference? Gratitude is active.

Which is better, genuine gratitude or contrived thanks? As a parent, we have all had days when a child says “thank you” with a bad attitude and a strong undertone. Keep in mind, gratitude is more than a simple thank you. Expressing thanks is nice but thanksgiving is much better when gratitude naturally flows with words. Gratitude is a genuine feeling from an uncoerced heart. It doesn’t take much willpower to throw out a “thank you.” Gratitude is an outflow of delight. In fact, genuine gratitude isn’t solely focused on a gift received, but more delighted in the act of the giver.

Colossians reminds us that we can inspire and encourage one another to cultivate genuine gratitude in all that we do. Representing Jesus goes much deeper than a smile and coy words of “thanks.” Cultivation requires digging deep, and introspectively examining our hearts and motives.

The next time you say “thank you” consider your words and quietly weigh out if the response is filled with gratitude at the heart level, I’ll do the same.