A Thankful Heart in All Things

One of the repeated messages of the Doctrine and Covenants is the need for us to give thanks to the Lord. One revelation says this: “But ye are commanded in all things to ask of God, who giveth liberally; and that which the Spirit testifies unto you even so I would that ye should do in all holiness of heart, walking uprightly before me, considering the end of your salvation, doing all things with prayer and thanksgiving…. And ye must give thanks unto God in the Spirit for whatsoever blessing ye are blessed with.” (Doctrine and Covenants 46:7, 32). We are commanded to ask God for what we need, but He also requires that we give thanks for all the blessings He bestows. He wants us to recognize His hand in our lives: “And in nothing doth man offend God, or against none is his wrath kindled, save those who confess not his hand in all things, and obey not his commandments” (Doctrine and Covenants 59:21). We do that as we give thanks in prayer for how we see His hand in our lives. He wants to bless us, and He desires that we “receive it from the hand of the Lord, with a thankful heart in all things” (Doctrine and Covenants 62:7). As we recognize His blessings, He will continue to bless us: “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). We should seek to see His blessings in all that happens to us: “Verily I say unto you my friends, fear not, let your hearts be comforted; yea, rejoice evermore, and in everything give thanks; Waiting patiently on the Lord” (Doctrine and Covenants 98:1-2). That means that even in our trials and afflictions we should give thanks. Even on our bad days and in our painful moments, we should wait patiently on Him and give thanks. The opening words to the dedicatory prayer for the Kirtland Temple should be the feeling of our hearts always: “Thanks be to thy name, O Lord God of Israel, who keepest covenant and showest mercy unto thy servants who walk uprightly before thee, with all their hearts” (Doctrine and Covenants 109:1).

                The Book of Mormon similarly invites us to give thanks to the Lord. Alma invited his son that his “heart be full of thanks unto God” every morning (Alma 37:37). King Benjamin spoke of our debt of gratitude in this way: “O how you ought to thank your heavenly King! I say unto you, my brethren, that if you should render all the thanks and praise which your whole soul has power to possess, to that God who has created you, and has kept and preserved you, and has caused that ye should rejoice, and has granted that ye should live in peace one with another—I say unto you that if ye should serve him who has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to your own will, and even supporting you from one moment to another—I say, if ye should serve him with all your whole souls yet ye would be unprofitable servants” (Mosiah 2:19-21). It is so easy to get caught up in the stresses and problems of life that we forget to thank the Lord who created us and gave us everything from the beginning. I love this invitation from Amulek: “That ye contend no more against the Holy Ghost, but that ye receive it, and take upon you the name of Christ; that ye humble yourselves even to the dust, and worship God, in whatsoever place ye may be in, in spirit and in truth; and that ye live in thanksgiving daily, for the many mercies and blessings which he doth bestow upon you” (Alma 34:38). We need thanksgiving daily, and we should strive to see those mercies and blessings every day which we may miss if we let ourselves be too caught up in our problems.  

Being a parent helps one realize what it is like to have your efforts go unnoticed and not thanked, and this can give us a new perspective to motivate us to be more grateful to our Heavenly Father. Recently my wife spent a long time with one particular child, helping them with something they really wanted help with, and, in the end, she was kicked in the shins by this child when they got frustrated with something. It wasn’t exactly the thanks she was looking for. Perhaps we too are sometimes like my child, getting significant divine help in our lives only to focus on what still frustrates us and turning an angry eye towards heaven. Surely we all need to try to thank the Lord more for what He does, usually behind the scenes, to bless and help us in our lives.