Eternally Grateful

“Instant gratification is not soon enough.” ~Meryl Streep, American actress (b 1949)

It was sleek, shiny, black and really, really big. It was something to be both admired and envied at the same time. In our case, it was mostly envy. Bob had brought home a brand new monster SUV complete with spinner hubcaps. It was so big it seemed a small family could have moved in quite comfortably. He had strategically positioned the vehicle in his driveway so it could be seen, regardless of which direction one was driving.

Bob called it his “Babe Magnet.” Ironically the only people attracted to the car at the moment were the men of the neighborhood. The hood was propped open with five male heads peering inside. I couldn’t help but wonder to myself how Bob could afford this gas guzzler. He was a tradesman and his wife worked in the local elementary school office.

“It’s got a Vortec 6.0L V8 engine and a 300-volt battery pack,” Bob was saying. “Since it’s a Hybrid it’ll get 23 mpg highway and it utilizes a strong coil-over-shock front suspension for a tight turning radius and a smooth ride.” “Bob sounds like a Super Bowl Commercial,” I thought to myself.

“Sweet ride Bob,” someone crooned. “Yeah nice wheels,” responded another. “Can I take it camping next week? It could sleep my family of five.” We all laughed.

Bob finished the tour with a demonstration of the sound system. As “Paint it Black” by the Rolling Stones boomed over the Bose Centerpoint Speaker System, we congratulated Bob on his purchase while secretly wondering to ourselves how he could afford it.

Bob was obviously enjoying the attention. “Now it’s time to break it in,” he announced with a flourish pulling the keys from his pocket. We all anticipated we would be invited to climb aboard for a test drive. Instead, to our surprise and bewilderment, Bob walked purposefully to the back of the vehicle and made a small scratch in the left rear quarter panel with his key.

We all gasp. “Wadya do that for?” someone exclaimed. Bob turned to face us. In a voice, that sounded a bit too much like an evangelical preacher, he explained: “Sooner or later this beautiful beast is going to get a door ding or a scratch on it.” It always upsets me when that happens to a new car; so this way, if I do it myself, I never have to worry about getting that first mark on the finish. Understand?” Frankly, we didn’t.

It is all too easy to mistake gratification for gratitude.

Gratification is “the act of pleasing or satisfying oneself, especially the gratifying of one's own impulses, needs, or desires.” Like drugs or alcohol the initial effect is pleasant, even euphoric. But, with the first scratch, the first stain or simple familiarity, the effect quickly dissipates.

Most of us would be satisfied with being happy; even if we were happy only some of the time. Unfortunately, happiness borne out of gratification is, at best, shallow and short-lived. Possessions, as nice as they are, provide us with a sense of gratification, but will never provide us with happiness.

Jean Baptiste Massieu once described gratitude as “the memory of the heart.” Unlike gratification, which arises out of individual experience, gratitude is a state of being. In other words, gratitude is an attitude.

True gratitude arises out of a realization that everything is a gift from God; even the breath we just took and the next. When, by the grace of God, we receive His gifts gratefully, we will find ourselves living a life filled with gratitude. It is an attitude which sustains us in good times and in bad, even when our new car gets scratched.

Dear God: Remind me that gratified is not satisfied.

“When we were children we were grateful to those who filled our stockings at Christmas time. Why are we not grateful to God for filling our stockings with legs?” ~G.K. Chesterton, English writer and Christian apologist (1874 – 1936)

©2013 James E. Carper. All rights reserved.

“90 Second Stewardship”  All rights are reserved. You are welcome and encouraged to forward this e-mail to family and friends provided the”© 2013 James E. Carper. All rights reserved.” is included along with this message. Organizations, whether for or non profit, are required to receive written approval before reproducing these reflections. If written approval is given the “© 2013 James E. Carper. All rights reserved.” must be included along with this message.