My glass is either half full - because I am aware of how, in my life, I have experienced having my glass filled time and again.
OR
My glass is half empty - because as I look at my life, I see all that I lack, and I am not remembering the past that is full of blessings.
I impact my own gratitude by how (or if) I choose to reflect on my past.
I was reading Psalm 105-106 today. It records over and over how God was faithful to the Israelites in their journey out of Egypt and through the desert. It also points to the fact that we as humans are so forgetful, and that our trust should be based on our history.
Our fathers, when they were in Egypt, did not consider your wondrous works; they did not remember the abundance of your steadfast love, but rebelled by the sea, at the red sea. Yet, He saved them for His name's sake, that He might make known His mighty power.
Psalm 106:7-8
"But they soon forgot His works..." (Psalm 106:13)"They forgot God, their Savior, who had done great things..." (Psalm 106:21)
A lack of remembrance is connected to action. It is really easy for me to look at the record of these people who lived long ago and scoff at their "forgetfulness". I mean, here are these people living in the midst of miracles. - God sending the plagues to provoke their freedom from Egypt. Leading them to the Red Sea and then PARTING the waters so that they could walk through the sea to freedom. Taking them through the desert and daily providing them with bread to eat that would fall from the sky, hearing them declare their thirst and causing water to flow from a rock... I can so easily see their constant forgetfulness and how it caused them to complain and to fear for their present circumstances. In my head, I think, "If I had seen God open the sea, or drop bread into my hands every day, I would absolutely KNOW that He would continue to care for me."
But, here is what I know about myself. I forget today how God was faithful to me yesterday. I forget that He created the two children who are MIRACLES in the midst of my infertility. I forget that He has absolutely provided for our family in the most amazing ways in the midst of this economic uncertainty. It may not be water flowing out of a rock, but it is clear to me that God is doing good things in my life daily.
So, if I am going to have this revolution of gratitude in my life, I think where I have to start is by remembering. There is this section of Deuteronomy that always gives me chills:
I am going to start today with remembering.
