Praying for grateful, not ungrateful, hearts

November is not only the month of our national Thanksgiving observance, this year it will also see worship services at St. John Lutheran Church taking personal account of God’s blessings in our lives. Our goal is that we don’t miss God’s love; rather, we grow in wonder as we see the cup of God’s blessings overflow in our lives.

Yet, how easy it is to be ungrateful, even for seemingly understandable reasons.

Maybe you’ve seen the 1965 Jimmy Stewart movie “Shenandoah.” A pivotal scene at the beginning of this movie is a prayer of thanks as the family gathers to eat. It looks like a prayer of thanks, sort of, but you judge for yourself. Stewart prayed, “Lord, we cleared this land. We plowed it, sowed it and harvested it. We cooked the harvest. It wouldn’t be here, we wouldn’t be eating it, if we hadn’t done it all ourselves. We worked dog-boned hard for every crumb and morsel. But we thank you just the same anyway, Lord, for this food we’re about to eat. Amen.”

This prayer shows a lack of real thanks. After this prayer, the family in the movie is hit by tragedy after tragedy as the Civil War ravages the United States. Sincere thanks ultimately is found through the family tragedies.

How often do we take God’s blessings for granted or forget he is the giver of all good things?

On a personal level, I continue to be excited about my recent bison hunt. You may have been “assaulted” by my stories of the stalk and hunt. Yet, if I stop my stories by telling you that I am the one who shot the bison, then I forget or ignore all the help that made this hunt possible. St. John member Harvey Kolberg took me under his wing to teach me about this once-in-a-lifetime hunt. The local farmers were gracious in their permission to hunt on their property. Help above and beyond any expectation was given to us by Scott Hollembaek and family. And, I received daily help and encouragement through my illness and in the hunt from friend Gerry Zellar. If I focused on my part of the hunt and forgot all that help, I would be ungrateful.

Unfortunately, thankfulness should be natural, but ungratefulness is only too common, even in the lives and hearts of people who follow Jesus. That is why Psalm 103 warns in verses 1 and 2, “Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.”

Even when we make a list of list our personal blessings we can forget the undeserved grace we receive through Jesus. Our sin and rebellion deserve God’s punishment and our death. But instead, God showers love, forgiveness and eternal life freely through faith. We receive life instead of death. Our hearts should be overflowing in heartfelt thanks.

My prayer is that my heart does not take God’s blessings for granted, nor accept ungratefulness. I pray instead to sincerely rejoice in the love of God that he showers on us in Jesus.

Jonathan Rockey is pastor of St. John Lutheran Church in Palmer.

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