GRATITUDE: November 25, 2007

11/25/07

God of grace, creation and renewal:

We are people who unwittingly take the many miracles of life for granted.

We thank you for you wondrous gifts of clean air, clean water,

wholesome food:

those simple things upon which our lives depend.

We thank you for your wondrous gifts of color, sound, taste, aroma, texture, that delight our senses and add a special beauty to our days.

We thank you for the gift of each other,

and pray that we may truly treat each other as gifts from you.

Teach us to enjoy the wonder of life, O God.

Receive these gifts we return to you in token of our thanksgiving.

Use them and use us in love for your world.

The great sea

Has sent me adrift,

It moves me as a weed in a great river,

Earth and the great weather

Move me,

Have carried me away

And move my inward parts with joy.

Inuit

My work is loving the world.

Here are the sunflowers, there the hummingbird –

equal seekers of sweetness

Here the quickening yeast; there the blue plums

Here the clam deep in the speckled sand.

Are my boots old? Is my coat torn?

Am I no longer young, and still not half perfect? Let me

keep my mind on what matters,

which is my work,

which is mostly standing still and learning g to be

astonished.

The phoebe the delphinium.

The sheep in the pasture and the pasture.

Which is mostly rejoicing, since all the ingredients are here,

which is gratitude, to be given a mind and a heart

and these body-clothes,

a mouth with which to give shouts of joy

to the moth and the wren, to the sleepy dug-up clam,

telling them all, over and over, how it is

that we live forever.

Mary Oliver

Researchers find the virtues of gratitude include good health.

From Cicero to Buddha, many philosophers and spiritual teachers have celebrated gratitude. The world's major religions, including Christianity, Judaism, Islam and Hindu, prize gratitude as a morally beneficial emotional state that encourages reciprocal kindness. Pastors, priests, parents and grandparents have long extolled the virtues of gratitude, but until recently, scholars have largely ignored it as a subject of scientific inquiry.

McCollough and Emmons report that the results of their study indicated that daily gratitude exercises resulted in higher reported levels of alertness, enthusiasm, determination, optimism and energy. (3 groups: list of events of day, unpleasant experiences, things to be grateful for) Additionally, the gratitude group experienced less depression and stress, was more likely to help others, exercised more regularly and made more progress toward personal goals. According to the findings, people who feel grateful are also more likely to feel loved. McCollough and Emmons also noted that gratitude encouraged a positive cycle of reciprocal kindness among people since one act of gratitude encourages another.

McCullough says these results also seem to show that gratitude works independently of faith. Though gratitude is a substantial part of most religions, he says the benefits extend to the general population, regardless of faith or lack thereof. In light of his research, McCullough suggests that anyone can increase their sense of well-being and create positive social effects just from counting their blessings.
Michael McCullough: Professor of Psychology

Reading from Tom Cowan:

O Great Spirit

Oh Our God, wisdom through the ages

We are thankful for your spirit that permeates all that is

Help us grow in your knowledge

Because we long for you with our whole being

May we call on you intimately, like a friend

Father, Mother, God,

Thank you for your presence
during the hard and mean days.
For then we have you to lean upon.
Thank you for your presence
during the bright and sunny days,
for then we can share that which we have
with those who have less.
And thank you for your presence
during the Holy Days, for then we are able
to celebrate you and our families
and our friends.
For those who have no voice,
we ask you to speak.
For those who feel unworthy,
we ask you to pour your love out
in waterfalls of tenderness.
For those who live in pain,
we ask you to bathe them

in the river of your healing.

For those who are lonely, we ask
you to keep them company.
For those who are depressed,
we ask you to shower upon them
the light of hope.

Oh, Our God, wisdom through the ages

We are thankful for your spirit that permeates all that is

Help us grow in your knowledge

Because we long for you with our whole being

May we call on you intimately, like a friend.

Dear Creator, You, the borderless
sea of substance, we ask you to give to all the
world that which we need most—Peace.

prayer - maya angelou