Gratitude as an Attidude

Greetings from Philly! I received a nice compliment from the cleaning person. Apparently they have been working on this floor for four years and have never seen anyone exercise like I have been. I figure I can't lay in bed all day trying to beat this disease. I've got to get up and fight!

My amazing mother Lucile has kept me company in the hospital when Amanda is busy with our son. It has been a joy to be in her presence, she has always been a great example of compassion and charity in my life. I also have my amazing mother-in-law to thank for her sacrifice. She has uprooted from her down home ranch in Idaho to help take care of our son so that he can be with his mom and dad during this crazy time in our lives.

Love these ladies!

I'd go on to thank my wife now, however it would take several more pages to describe the smallest fraction of the love and gratitude I have for her and the amazing strength she is to me.

What am I trying to say... I'm grateful. 

Yes, it looks pretty grim right now. I can't even close my mouth to swallow without using my finger to help push it shut, but I am grateful :)

In his recent conference address President Uchtdorf reminded us that, 

"It is easy to be grateful for things when life seems to be going our way. But what then of those times when what we wish for seems to be far out of reach?

Could I suggest that we see gratitude as a disposition, a way of life that stands independent of our current situation? In other words, I’m suggesting that instead of being thankful for things, we focus on being thankful in our circumstances—whatever they may be."

I continue to contemplate Joseph Smith's experience in Liberty Jail. Under the most horrific conditions he received some of the most amazing revelations that are recorded in the doctrine and covenants. In a CES fireside about the topic Elder Jeffrey R. Holland stated the following, 

"You can have sacred, revelatory, profoundly instructive experiences with the Lord in any situation you are in... In the most miserable experiences of your life. In the worst settings, while enduring the most painful injustices, when facing the most insurmountable odds and opposition you have ever faced."

 
When we show gratitude and humility to the Lord, he can and will edify us in any circumstance of life. Holland continues, "Every experience can become a redemptive experience if we remain bonded to our Father in Heaven through that difficulty."

In this way our gratitude becomes an act of faith. Faith that we trust in God's will and his plan for us. I am grateful because I have faith in an eternal plan of happiness.

D&C 78:19 "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."