redefining grateful (and his synonymous friends)

They deserve a better life.

I found myself listening to these precious children reciting Bible verses in their native language, running about and shouting with glee and wanted so badly to stow them away in my baggage and take them home with me. I found myself wishing that I could give them a better upbringing--one that involved air conditioned rooms, their own beds, parents that doted upon them each and every second.

But, in many ways, I was wrong.

Why, you wonder. Because, they don't need that. What they need is the gospel. Society teaches a different gospel today--the gospel of materialism. The more you have, the better. Even our hashtags on Instagram for blessed and grateful have become so cliché and overused that they have lost meaning. (I say this 100% guilty, by the way). Mostly they point to meaningless possessions we own. Where did we get the idea that being blessed comes in the form of having more material possessions than one with less? Why does that make us more "blessed"?

It doesn't.

And yet, we believe it. We find ourselves more fortunate than the kids from the village and the most rural parts of the world because we have more. In some ways, yes, we do have more. Yes, we have an upper hand when it comes to technology and a way of living. But we fall in the trap of believing we are better and then we slap a label on it, deem ourselves thankful for our bountiful possessions and tell other people after returning home from our short term missions trips (STM) that we learned to be more grateful for what we have.

Let me make myself clear. I am not saying we should be ungrateful with what we do have. If that is what you are getting from this, I apologize. I have not conveyed myself clearly enough. Always carry a heart of gratefulness for there are few things more endearing than one who can count his or her blessings in a heartbeat. But that is far from my point. To put it simply, if to "be more grateful" was the only thing you took home from your STM, then I'm sorry, but you had better reevaluate. At the end of the day, it doesn't fall on how much you own that makes you better than the next man. Don't you forget that the gospel is for you, too. Who cares if you have more? What will a man profit if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?

I listened to the kids singing praises to our King that Sunday morn and deep down, I realized that they were the ones that were truly blessed because they get it. They understand, maybe not entirely but they are experiencing the joy that the gospel calls for each of us. And to have it is the most prized possession one can ever inherit in this lifetime. Preach the gospel to yourself daily, my friend reminded before I left. I didn't get it then, but now I'm beginning to. Don't lose sight of this truth. This gospel is for everyone. It came at a cost and serves as a constant reminder of the person I would be without it and who I am in it. This is it. This is why we ought to be grateful. This is why we are blessed.