The Attitude of Gratitude Primer
compiled by Rev. Steve Colladay
Here’s a virtual cornucopia of gratitude verses, sayings, quotes and stories from Rev. Steve – seven packed pages collected over the years! We’ve reprinted page one below. For much, much more, download the pdf, print it, and keep it handy anytime you want to jump start your own gratitude practice!
Jesus’ prayer of thanksgiving:
“Dear God, I am thankful that you have heard me.
I knew that you always hear me.” –John 11:41-42
“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances.”
–1Thessalonians 5:28
“This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
–Psalm 118:24
“…giving thanks to God the Father at all times…”
–Ephesians 5:20
“My cup runneth over.”–Psalms 23:5
“O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever.” –Psalm 30:12
“Life without thankfulness is devoid of love and passion.
Hope without thankfulness is lacking in fine perception.
Faith without thankfulness lacks strength and fortitude.
Every virtue divorced from thankfulness is maimed and limps along the spiritual road.”
— John Henry Jowett
“God thank you for my pain,
for without it I would not know joy. Thank you for my weariness,
for without it rest would have no meaning. Thank you for my weakness,
for without it I could not develop strength. Thank you for my ignorance,
for without it there would be nothing to learn. Thank you for my failures,
for without them I would not know the satisfaction of success.
Show me always to accept what is that I might strive for what might be ”
— Joseph R Davis
“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.
It turns what we have into enough and more.
It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity.”
— Melody Beattie from The Language of Letting Go
“We ought all to make an effort to act on our first thoughts and let our unspoken gratitude find expression. Then there would be more sunshine in the world and more power to work for what is good.”
— Dr. Albert Schweitzer from Memoirs of Childhood and Youth
“There are two ways to live your life.
One is as though nothing is a miracle.
The other is as though everything is a miracle.”
—Albert Einstein
“Every single thing we have has been given to us, not necessarily because we deserved it, but gratuitously, for no known reason. And whatever source we believe is the giver – some concept of God or simply the breathtaking randomness of the universe – when we give thanks, we take our place in the great wheel of life, recognizing our connection to one another and to all of creation.”
–Br. David Steindl-Rast
“It is impossible to be grateful and unhappy at the same time.”
“In relation to others, gratitude is good manners;
in relation to ourselves, it is a habit of the heart and a spiritual discipline.”
–Daphne Rose Kingma
“Meditation is a continuous song of gratitude
that God is love, that God is here, and that God is now.”
— Joel S. Goldsmith from “The Art of Meditation”
“Thanksgiving is a sure index of spiritual health.” –Maurice Dometz
“One of life’s gifts is that each of us,
no matter how tired and downtrodden,
finds reasons for thankfulness.”
–J. Robert Maskin
“Gratitude is the memory of the heart.” –Massieu
“Reflect upon your present blessings,
of which every man has plenty;
not on your past misfortunes of which all men have some.”
–Charles Dickens
“Hem your blessings with thankfulness so they don’t unravel.” –Anonymous
“No longer forward nor behind I look in hope or fear;
But, grateful, take the good I find, The best of now and here.”
-John Greenleaf Whittier