All Things With Thankfulness

To my daughter,

               Lately there has been a lot of unrest in this country and you have likely heard many discussions about politics, the presidential election, and people who are upset over this or that. Notwithstanding all of this, I want you to know that I am deeply grateful to live in this country which was “set up as a free people by the power of the Father” as the Savior declared (3 Nephi 21:4). We are so blessed to live here and to enjoy the benefits of freedom that we have. The Savior also said this in a revelation to the Prophet Joseph Smith about the Constitution, the fundamental founding document that establishes how our government works: “According to the laws and constitution of the people, which I have suffered to be established, and should be maintained for the rights and protection of all flesh, according to just and holy principles; That every man may act in doctrine and principle pertaining to futurity, according to the moral agency which I have given unto him, that every man may be accountable for his own sins in the day of judgment” (Doctrine and Covenants 101:77-78). This country was established by the Savior to be free, meaning that each of us could act “according to the moral agency” which He has given us. That means that we are free to choose how to live our lives, so long as we do so within the limits of the law. This we most often take for granted, but for much of the world, this is not the case, and I hope you will learn to recognize just how blessed you are to have the freedom to live as you choose in this country. 

               Recently you listened to the book The Girl With Seven Names, and I am sure you were surprised to see just how different the society was that this girl grew up in when compared to your own. She could not practice religion, the entertainment she participated in was limited to what was sanctioned by the government, she could only wear certain clothes, she had to praise the leaders of her country, and she was very limited in what she could say or otherwise do. And this type of society led to many having a shortage of food and supplies so that hundreds of thousands of people died in a famine when she was a teenager. I hope hearing her difficult story helped you to realize how blessed we are to be free to say what we want and worship as we choose and live the life that we make for ourselves. And the fact that we have ample food on the table every meal is truly an incredible blessing that we should not take for granted!

               I want to invite you today to find ways to express gratitude more often for the many blessings our Father in Heaven has given you. When you feel like complaining about something you don’t have, think instead about something you do have and express thanks for that. You can show your thanks in words to those around you and in prayers to your Father in Heaven. He gave this incredible promise: “And he who receiveth all things with thankfulness shall be made glorious; and the things of this earth shall be added unto him, even an hundred fold, yea, more” (Doctrine and Covenants 78:19). That is the challenge for you and for me—to receive all things with gratitude. No matter what situation we are in, no matter what challenges we face, no matter what we feel we don’t have, we can always find something to be grateful for.

Love,

Dad