Yesterday I was talking to a friend of mine. Fred was telling me about his busy schedule. To bring in a little bit of extra money for his family he’s started working a few extra hours each week as a tutor. Fred explained that he was pretty bummed that after work he needed to spend another 2 1/2 hours tutoring when all he really wanted to do was go home. I need to make it clear that Fred and I are very close, we have known each other forever, and we tell each other the truth, often rather bluntly. (I would not recommend speaking to everyone the way Fred and I talk to each other). But anyway, I said to him, “Let me get this straight. You needed a little bit of extra money. You get hooked up with a nearly ideal second job that you were very grateful to find. Now you are crying about the fact that you have to spend a couple hours doing something you like and are good at, which by the way they’re going to pay you reasonably well for? That’s beyond crazy.” Like I said, we have this type of relationship. I do not make a habit of telling people they’re behavior is crazy. But if you knew Fred, you’d know that sometimes he is a little crazy.

Anyhow, Fred told me I was right. He had allowed his gratitude to be replaced by self-pity and entitlement. There’s been a good bit of talk around the idea of having an ‘attitude of gratitude’, in recent years especially it seems. So much so that I had begun to tune out that phrase; I was just so tired of hearing it. Like a great song that you can’t stand because it gets played way too much (Dancin’ in the Dark was like that 25 years ago). Truth be told, I’m no different than Fred. I fail to appreciate great things in my life all the time. I bet we all do it, at least once in a while.

A bit of a tangent here, but a couple nights back I was talking to Jack and Will (ages 7 and 5) at bedtime. We were talking about how God has a history of giving people what they ask for in prayer, at least if it’s something He knows is good for them. (Read 2 Kings 20:1-6 for evidence). We know it doesn’t mean we get everything we think we want, but we should always feel free to ask God for anything. We might get it, we might not, but we can always ask. My sons wondered what kinds of things I might ask for that would be bad for me. They couldn’t picture me praying for candy and it’s hard for them to think of other seemingly good things that are bad for us. For them it’s all about candy. I told them, “what if I prayed for a new car? That’s not a bad thing. Why might God not help me buy a new car? But what if God wants me to be really happy about the car I have now? What if I need to learn to be grateful for the perfectly good one I already own?” I think they understood, at least a little. But I know I learned a little bit too. It’s fun to have children who ask questions that I have never bothered to ask myself.

I’ve seen plenty of Coaches over the years, I’ve been one myself, who complain about the players on their roster. They think, “if only I had better athletes, or more of them, I’d be all set”. Maybe we need to be grateful for the players we have and work to make them the best they can be. Sounds a little preachy, doesn’t it? Just know that I’m talking to myself here more than anyone else. I can be the worst at this. Fred and I need to become more like Paul who wrote, “I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situtation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want”. (Philippians 4:12)