The Grace of Gratitude

“Grant me daily the grace of gratitude, to be thankful for all my many gifts,
and so be freed from artificial needs, that I might lead a joyful, simple life.” ~ Edward Hays

Throughout all of the writings on manifesting prosperity there is one common denominator – gratitude. We are told over and over, again and again, that unless we are in a spirit of gratitude, we cannot manifest what we truly desire. I have read dozens of books, reports, and articles on creating an abundant life and manifesting prosperity, and they have all spoken of gratitude.

What is this grace of gratitude?

According to Wikipedia, “gratitude, thankfulness, or appreciation is a positive emotion or attitude in acknowledgment of a benefit that one has received or will receive. According to University of California-Davis researcher, Robert Davis, gratitude requires three conditions: a gracious individual must behave in a way that was 1) costly to him or her, 2) valuable to the recipient, and 3) intentionally rendered. The term gratitude is derived from the Latin word gratia which is associated with the terms grace, gratefulness, and graciousness. This Latin root suggests the ideas of “Kindness, generousness, and gifts, the beauty of giving and receiving.”

So, gratitude really is grace. As grace is a freely given gift with no conditions attached; gratitude is about the feeling or attitude of that freely given or received gift. The emotion is said to be a positive emotion. This can be troubling when we are going through the storms of life, like a financial setback or the loss of something or someone dear to us. The trick is to feel gratitude even in those darkest of experiences.

Most manifestation literature speaks of gratitude because it is the easiest and quickest way to raise your vibration, thus increasing your positive energy. When your vibration is high then it is easier to manifest what you do want, because you are focused on what you do have instead of focused on what you do not have. Even on their Emotional Guidance Scale, Esther and Jerry Hicks puts gratitude at the top of the scale.

Gratitude is also something you can do, feel and think just about anywhere, anytime. You are stuck in traffic and your first tendency is to say a few swear words. It is at those times you need to remember that at least you have a car to drive; not to mention that if you are stuck in traffic it also means you are not on a respirator in a hospital somewhere, among thousands of other scenarios.

The next time you are stuck in traffic, remember that you are privileged to be stuck in traffic and be grateful. When I am on a bus and the bus driver has to pick up a wheelchair passenger, my first thought is this is going to add another ten minutes to this ride. Then I re-think and feel grateful that I could walk onto this bus on two legs and two feet; not to mention the countless of other bodily functions I am privileged to possess.

Gratitude really is a grace when you think about how it can make you feel. Unfortunately we are likely to feel gratitude during special occasions and holidays when gifts are being exchanged. This is sad because we believe that we can only feel grateful when something good happens, or when someone does or says something nice. Gratitude must become a spiritual practice to be consistently practiced every single day, and especially when the road gets dark and bleak. When we can experience those moments of darkness, and come out on the brighter side, then we know we have so much to be grateful for.

“Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.” ~ Luke 6:38