Fostering Grateful Hearts

As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches, we are often inundated with reminders to be thankful. It’s a great practice with many practical benefits. But to understand why gratitude is so important, it’s helpful to consider what happens in a heart void of thankfulness.

You don’t have to be a parent long to see thanklessness and entitlement demonstrated in your kids’ attitudes. It can manifest in major meltdowns at the checkout line or in the subtle expectations our children have about what they “deserve.” We could call it a lot of things—entitlement, ingratitude, discontent—but all of these are manifestations of bigger underlying beliefs.

Ultimately, ingratitude is a problem because it leads us to believe that God is not sufficient to meet our every need, that what He has provided isn’t enough, and that His good wisdom cannot be trusted. Let’s counter each of these lies with the truth of the gospel as we consider how understanding God’s character helps build grateful hearts in our kids.

Is God Sufficient to Meet Our Needs?

Western culture wants us to feel like we don’t have enough. A quick Google search shows that by the end of 2024, U.S. advertising spending is forecasted to top $389 billion—yes, BILLION. Roughly $12 to $20 billion of that is directed toward youth.

That is a lot of effort, psychology, and beautiful design thrown at keeping us discontented so we will spend more money to buy more things to make us more “happy.” Yet we know this happiness dwindles, and we’ll be left searching for the next thing to satisfy that longing.

In contrast, when we turn to the God of the Bible, we are met with the One who alone can satisfy us completely: "For he satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things (Psalm 107:9)."

When Jesus fed the 5,000, he miraculously met the physical needs of the people following Him. Yet as he speaks to them afterward in Capernaum, Jesus instructs them not to strive for food that perishes, “but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you (John 6:26).” He continues in verse 25, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”

In other words, those who put their faith in Jesus will be completely satisfied - both now and forever! He is more than sufficient to meet our needs, not just temporarily, but for eternity.

A grateful heart realizes the gravity of our sin and the generosity of Jesus’ sacrifice.

"And my God will supply every need of yours
according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”
Philippians 4:19

Is God Holding Out on Me?

This is a lie as old as humankind. In Genesis 3, Satan questions Eve: “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” God provided Adam and Eve with everything they needed, and they lived in perfection with God. Yet, in a posture of ingratitude, they overlooked their many blessings and believed that God was holding out on them.

Satan planted the lie of discontent in Eve’s heart in the garden, and he continues to whisper it today. Because God has given us His word, we can point to stories like these to show our children the destructiveness of this mindset.

His word also shows us the many times God has been faithful, providing for his people and meeting their needs. Of course, our greatest need was met in Jesus’ willing sacrifice on the cross to save us from sin and death. How could we possibly believe God is holding out on us when he is willing to let his perfect son receive the consequences of our sin?

A grateful heart recognizes that God gives us everything we need and withholds what is not in our best interest.

Can God’s Wisdom and Timing be Trusted?

Yesterday, one of my children asked for a piece of pie for breakfast. I told her, “You can’t have the pie right now, but we’re all going to enjoy a piece after supper later tonight!” I thought this would be great news. Yay! You get pie today!

It was not.

The response I got instead was, (you guessed it), “But I want the pie NOW!!!” I know I am not the only one to face this particular style of ingratitude. We want what we want, when we want it.

Instant gratification is easily accessible today, especially for our young children growing up as digital natives. To hear “no” or “not yet” is an affront to this expectation and the control that it assumes.

When we truly trust God’s perfect timing, we can experience peace instead of anger when something we want doesn’t happen in our timing. This point drives at the core of the posture we want to foster in ourselves and our children. The focus is not on being grateful for what God gives us, but on being grateful for who God is.

A grateful heart trusts God and his timing in all things, even when the answer is no.

"Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."
1 Thessalonians 5:18