MINISTER'S MOMENT

It is good to praise the Lord and make music to your name, O Most High, To proclaim your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night, To the music of the ten-stringed lyre and the melody of the harp. For you make me glad by your deeds, O Lord;I sing for joy at the works of your hands. (Psalm 92)

I have never had much difficulty thanking someone for the good gifts of life. It has come as no hardship for me to thank loved ones and friends for their love and self-giving that have made my life more enjoyable. I find it easy to thank God for the truly good and perfect gifts He gives to me.

Then I read about Hans Lilje. He was a German by ancestry and an American by birth who was taken as a prisoner of war during World War II. In a concentration camp, he was abused and severely mistreated. Yet, he never failed to thank the guard after the malicious beatings he took.

"Why do you thank me?" once asked the guard.

"You're doing your duty, aren't you?" responded the injured Lilje. "Then I am thanking you for being obedient to your superiors."

His attitude of gratitude changed the treatment he and his fellow prisoners received.

Gratitude enables us to overcome self-pity, anger, hatred, and even resentment toward God.

Paul said, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." (Philippians 4:6)

Bitterness is easy, but gratitude is better.

Rev. Charlotte Austin McCary's Chapel United Methodist Church