Pope Francis has said, “The Church must be a place of mercy freely given, where everyone can feel welcomed, loved, forgiven, and encouraged to live the good life of the Gospel.”
It is important for us to remember that we cannot work our way into Heaven. By our own unaided strength we can never do enough natural good in this life to “earn” our everlasting reward. Without God’s grace, we can do very little of spiritual value. That is why God expects us to cooperate with His grace for doing good and avoiding evil. Are we grateful for the chance to cooperate with His grace? Are we grateful for all the gifts He has given us? Does deep gratitude fill our hearts when we ponder how good God has been to us?
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What does real gratitude look like? There was once a quite old priest who was serving several mission communities in North Dakota. The people were always amazed because, no matter what the circumstances, he could always find something to give thanks for. As he made his rounds one cold December morning from mission church to mission church, he was late getting to Mass at one of them because of excessive snowdrifts and bitter cold temperatures. As he began the Mass, the parishioners were eager to hear what the old priest could come up with to be thankful for on this dismal, trying, and frigid morning. “Gracious Lord,” his prayer began, “we thank you that all days are not like today. Amen.”
