Gratitude as a gateway virtue

I want to offer some words on gratitude, not as a sappy admonition but as a potentially powerful tool for life change. Let’s look at gratitude for its usefulness to us. Irony? I do get it, but hang to what might be there.

This is not life change as in ‘how to be healthy, wealthy and wise’ though health and wisdom may well come with it. I’m talking about the sort of life change that God promises to believers in Romans 8:29 – “…to be conformed to the likeness of his Son.” This isn’t vague or dusty theological language, but instead is true virtue. Colossians 3:12 – “…clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.” The following verses build on this with forgiveness, love and peace. And with thankfulness, “gratitude in your hearts to God.”

You could also look at the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22. That list of nine virtues is a good bit to work on, if that’s what we’re doing. Even though the work is that of the Holy Spirit, our own accord with his work is helped by awareness of what he is, in fact, doing in our character. So, it might be of real value and virtue to have a powerful tool in this process of transformation.

Gratitude. Being thankful is a gateway into a beautiful range of virtues forming Christlikeness in us.

Would it surprise you that there’s actually a research basis for this? Not that research is the only, or even highest, path to truth, but it can be valuable, nonetheless. There is really solid research on the subject, some from a neat believer I had the pleasure of working with several years ago in a forum on measuring spiritual growth.

Dr. Michael Zigarelli is a professor at Messiah College who also served previously on the faculty at Liberty University. He studied behavior and character in over 5000 Christians worldwide, trying to find common practices of believers who most consistently show the fruit of the Spirit virtues. He found what other theologians, philosophers and social scientists have stated long before and since.

Gratitude is a “parent” virtue in that it begets other virtues. In Zigarelli’s findings, gratitude made the biggest difference (in statistical terms, showed the greatest correlation) for the presence of a broad array of other virtues. Kindness is a great thing, but it didn’t seem to produce peace. Patience is a powerful virtue, but didn’t show a strong parenting effect for compassion, for instance.

In contrast, thankfulness just didn’t seem to show up alone among the virtues of people studied. If gratitude was there, you saw a long list of other wonderful character traits, a bountiful harvest of the fruit of the Spirit.

You can make the connections and explanations for yourself. Start to think of what it means to be grateful. I acknowledge my life as a gift from God, I testify to the presence of Grace throughout my life. And guess what?

I experience love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. If I’m patient, I can wait but maybe I’m not moved to compassion. If I’m kind, I may treat others well but may not know much peace myself. Of course, there’s not a conflict between these virtues. But the connections may not be so strong. With gratitude, though, I seem to start at a place where the fruit of the Spirit flows freely.

So, how am I doing on this—me, in my life? Pretty up and down, I have to admit. I’m grateful for much, but not every day, and not in all or even most circumstances. I want things different, and I’m not thankful for today’s plate of life.

Gratitude doesn’t mean I like everything, but it does mean I find gifts all the time, every day, in every circumstance. God’s grace to me in Christ is always there, no matter the circumstance. That towers over any disappointment or discomfort. And the outworking of God’s grace touches more than my eternal salvation; it touches everything.

Yet my gratitude comes and goes. God never stopped giving, but I stop all the time noticing the gifts. So, how am I doing? Let’s just say there are myriad opportunities for gratitude to grow in my life and all the bountiful fruit of the Spirit with it.

Thanksgiving is coming quickly. For most us, the table will be full and even the chairs at the table will be full. Even if there’s a place missing and a bill that I don’t yet see how to pay and a blessing I might still be praying to be added to my bounty, the occasion for thanksgiving is fully furnished with the grace of my Lord.

I pray for gratitude, that I might see his fruit all the more in my life. And gratitude is such a clear and fruitful blessing for all of us, that I pray it for you as well. Lord, let us be thankful this Thanksgiving!