Our retreat today offered us the opportunity to reflect on the virtue of thankfulness. Thanking God is one way we show that we love Him. But St. John says, "If anyone says, "I love God," but hates his brother, he is a liar; for whoever does not love a brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen."
In other words, I will more readily thank God for His benefits if I customarily show gratitude to the people around me. A sincere "Thank you" should always be on my lips. I should say it to my fellow Brothers. Then, because I have set gratitude at the core of my character, I will remember to give a heartfelt "Thank you" to the Lord.
The adage, " Charity begins at home," implies that the home is the best place to start showing more thankfulness. Let us begin by showing more of it in our Communities and in our homes. Let us express more appreciation for what others do for us.
As we learn the habit of thanking people and acknowledging our dependence on them, we will develop a keener sense of our dependence on God. He is our Creator, the Giver of life. Through Him life has meaning and purpose. The past holds no enduring shadows. The future shines now with hope.
It is He who covers us with a robe of righteousness, who makes our failures a training ground for spiritual success. He strengthens us until we can serve in His temple forever. He is the One who erases all our pain and dries all our tears and gives us a renewed self to serve as a tabernacle for the soul.
Let us indeed give thanks—let us give thanks by giving Him the praise He is due.
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Pray for the Canonization of Blessed William Joseph Chaminade
Blessed William Joseph Chaminade
