Gratitude and Grace

I took an enjoyable walk yesterday with a dear friend. As we walked in a certain section of the park it felt as if we were in a perfectly framed picture of a flawless autumn afternoon.  I could feel the grace of nature all about, I could feel it pouring through me. In this state of grace I felt a deep gratitude for the friendship and the incredible beauty of my surroundings.

Grace is a mystical substance, we don’t have to do anything to get it, it is there in the mystery of life and what makes life  so awesome is that we are all channels for grace.  We don’t have to do anything to earn it. That is why it’s important to stop the internal noise, the mind chatter, pull the plug of our everyday life drop down into the heart and allow grace to flow through us. We don’t have to get grace – it’s already a part of who we are.

Here’s an example of how grace works. How many times have you judged someone harshly and you hear a voice saying, “Don’t go there?” Or you get really angry and you just want to lash out at a family member, a co-worker or the store clerk and that same voice says, “Do you really want to say that?” That’s grace in action – that’s how it operates in your life. It keeps you from doing something harsh and gives you the option of doing something beneficial.

Grace opens the door to gratitude in its purist most beautiful form. The grace of gratitude is love. Brother David Steindl-Rast says; “We grow in love when we grow in gratitude.”  It’s the same with grace; we grow in love when we allow grace to pour through us.

In the past few days I’ve been immersed in gratitude for my family and friends.  I’ve been immersed in gratitude for all the good in my life, even the good that is not yet seen.

Grace gives us the courage to go out and boldly live life and not be frightened of it. Gratitude opens our hearts to that life we are so boldly living.  

Live boldly and make it a great day!