Published in The Bluffton News, November 2, 2022. CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD A COPY
This morning before your feet hit the floor, I’m wondering, did you say, “Good Morning, God” or “Good God, it’s morning.” We always, and in all ways, get to choose our attitude. A discussion I often have with our Unity congregants is, “Attitudes are contagious. The question though: is yours worth catching?”
In Unity we teach and follow how Jesus lived his life as the great example, rather than the great exception. The Bible tells us in the Matthew 6:33, “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”
Metaphysically, we interpret this to understand that gratitude and thanksgiving work swiftly to make the mind receptive and responsive to God – the kingdom within. These attitudes of mind fill us – you and me – with expectancy of the “added things” promised by scripture in the Gospel of Matthew.
Unity believes Jesus lived, not to save us, but rather to direct our attention back to the reality of who we are as divine expressions of God. Unity students follow how Jesus lived because he practiced what he taught. A favorite Unity affirmation says, “What God can do for me, God must do through me.” Our action – yours and mine – is the necessary process that completes the manifestation of God’s good through us.
So how do we live as gratitude expressing? We can be thankful for every blessing we receive. We can be thankful for every little thing we have. We can say to ourselves, “I am blessed and I am a blessing.” Right here, right now, I invite you to take time to acknowledge this wondrous season of harvest and the bountiful traditions of getting to gratitude and sharing from our full hearts.
Every day offers us the opportunity to make a difference in our own lives and in the lives of others. We get to measure goodness by what we embrace, what we create, and who we include. Gratitude allows for each of us to make sense of our past, bring peace to this day, and create an intention for tomorrow. An attitude of gratitude affirms the realization that we are now in heaven (on earth).
Each time we choose to notice life’s blessings instead of focusing on life’s annoyances, we are aware of the gift of this present moment.
Join me as we take pause together today to celebrate that we each can and do make grateful meaning for our own lives, by the chosen sacred services we do. Whether it is a shared smile, holding open a door, or volunteering in our community.
Together, with gratitude and our hands and our hearts, we create a world that works for all. Amen.