A Grateful Heart

Bible Verse: Proverbs 15:15-17 "All the days of the oppressed are wretched, but the cheerful heart has a continual feast. Better a little with the fear of the Lord than great wealth with turmoil. Better a small serving of vegetables with love than a fattened calf with hatred."

Insight: I find this Bible verse so beautiful. It encapsulates the beauty of having your joy set in the Lord and how much our mindsets truly have so much power over us. When we go through life with negativity and anger, regardless of what we may have, we will be filled with only negativity and anger. When we have a grateful heart, despite anything we may be going through, we are brought to a place of gratitude and joy. Our circumstances shouldn't dictate our joy—our God should dictate our joy. It goes to show how empty it is to be filled merely by the things of this world or the things we may want. How do we find gratitude in the midst of circumstances we may not like? Well, the Bible verse speaks of vegetables served with love or a fattened calf with hatred. The person eating the vegetables can either look at the love that they are given with gratitude, or they can think about how someone else has a calf and feel anger. How many times a day do you look at your circumstances and wish that they were something else? If only I had that job. If only I lived in that neighborhood. If only I had this thing. There will always be things or circumstances that we wish we could change, but what about God in the midst of it all? How about instead we say, thank you God for the job I have, thank you God for the home you have given me, and thank you God for all that you have provided for me.

Work application: We may often find ourselves in a position where we don't feel grateful for our career journey, or we may feel like we're behind and failing. Career paths aren't meant to be extremely easy—it takes time and patience to move forward. We have the choice to find joy in the current stage of our career path and be grateful for the skills we are learning in whatever we may be doing. Think of the example of an internship—you can either be very grateful for all of the opportunities you have to learn and grow, or you can wish you already had a higher position. Sarah Y. Tse, co-author of From Illusion to Reality, speaks on her beginnings in her university's cafeteria and custodial team. Sarah speaks about these two jobs with high esteem because they taught her humility, discipline, and hard work. She could have looked at these jobs as beneath her, but instead, she was grateful and allowed herself to learn valuable skills that have stayed with her until today. I challenge you to find gratitude in your day-to-day lives and thank God for His provision.

Grateful: I am grateful that I get to praise God amid any and all circumstances.

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Contributor: Jessica Carrera holds a B.A. in English with a concentration in writing and a minor in Biblical Studies from Biola University. She aspires to touch the lives of others through her words.