Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens. Yep, I’m singing about my favorite things as I tie up the last of the bright paper packages for our grands. Devotion is on my mind, considering the gifts I hope inspire them to love God and family even more.
My Favorites List always includes the grandchildren. And YOU! I’m sending you a picture of their adorable new puppy just to brighten your day!
Anna joined me on Fireside Talk Radio to share her thoughts about prompting devotion in our families. I loved what she said, particularly about toddlers. We’ve seen over and over where devotion blossoms out of gratitude. Gratitude changes people around us, not to mention our own hearts.
Devotion and Gratitude Go Together
So what is devotion really? Naturally, Anna and I came up with our own definition; a little gift to you.
Devotion— Loving others well and thereby giving to glory God.
I don’t know about you, but there were years when so many packages under the tree meant really rotten, spoiled attitudes at my house. And I’m not talking about the children! I get grumpy this time of year.
Devoted to Beauty and Creativity
As an artist, Anna knows the energizing value of gratitude.
“With an unthankful heart, how am I going to perceive beauty? How am I going to be creative?” Anna asks. “How am I going to have energy to brainstorm or come up with ideas or different solutions, if my heart is ungrateful and stubborn?” Much less devote ourselves to family via all the tasks that pile up this time of year?!
Clearly, gratitude is a super-power, one of the most powerful forces in the whole universe. Will gratitude make Mommy (read: me) a happier gal? Can we spread gratitude around like fairy-dust in our families? Does gratitude spark devotion? You bet!
Gratitude is empowering. In a full circle way, praising God with gratitude fills us up with energy to do the things that are like Him, i.e. unselfishly devoting ourselves to others.
Devotion Sparked By Gratitude
Anna and I wanted to come up with ways gratitude fuels devotion in families. So, we started with the opposite of devotion and gratitude. What are the opposites of gratitude?
“Entitlement, control. For me and for my toddlers,” she laughs. “When they’re being ungrateful, it’s easier to identify in my toddlers than in myself.” She tells of identifying their bad attitudes only to discover there’s more to the story.
“I pray about it (entitlement, rebellion, and ungratefulness) in them,” she explains. “Then, I’m like, ‘Oh wait, Lord, that’s me too. Oops.’ It’s like a fountain. When I’m ungrateful, it just flows right over into my little toddlers’ hearts.”
#1 Gratitude prompts freedom.
As a college student, Anna observed a young father who insisted his children say, “No, thank you,” instead of “Quit! Stop!”
Even when it sounded a little awkward, Anna loved it. Later, she and her husband adopted the habit in their home.
“My kids, when they’re offered something, have the choice of saying, ‘Yes, please’ or ‘No, thank you.’ That’s so freeing because it’s just two choices. After they’ve chosen, they can clarify. But they’re thankful first, even if they’re turning it down.”
As grandparents, we LOVE the way Anna’s children use such excellent manners. It’s so beautiful to us. Sometimes, it’s hilarious. They think “No, thank you” settles the matter.
“Because it’s so very polite,” Anna laughs. “I’ve actually had a sweet Sunday school teacher tell me my children were the most politely defiant children she’d ever had in her class.”
#2 Gratitude Fuels Devotion to Others
Bucking authority and rebellion often come out of an ungrateful heart. Not always, of course, but sometimes. A simple reminder to be thankful can check our kids’ hearts, and, yes, our own.
Discontented. That’s how I experience entitlement in my life. I discovered as I focused on my sin of entitlement, gratitude is the cure. Gratitude is a choice, too, which means we can grasp gratitude in bucketloads if we desire it. With grateful hearts, devotion to those we love flows freely.
“I’m thankful. That means I’m trusting in the provenance of God. I’m relying on Him,” explains Anna. Trusting God means we are free to let Him lead us in all our relationships. Or, ahem, convict our own rebellious hearts.
#3 Gratitude Prompts Devotion to God, Too
Gratitude and praying without ceasing are closely associated, according to Anna. “That combination is what God wants for us,” she adds. There’s a reason this thought comes to Anna’s mind easily; it’s from one of her dad’s favorite verses. David quotes I Thessalonians 5 frequently. (For more ways to fill your kids’ hearts with wonder, click here.)
“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” (I Thessalonians 5:16-18 NKJV)
New Habits of Devotion
“I remember a moment when every other word you said was something about thankfulness and gratitude. It was a definite pattern,” Anna told me. “You were trying to redirect our family chemistry and habits. I’m sure that’s part of my ease with contentment because of that moment when our patterns began to change.”
Just so we’re clear, I was really just trying to redirect my own heart. I was making a choice to devote myself to gratitude, rather than wallowing in self-pity and entitlement.
But Anna’s point is well-made. Anything in Mommy’s heart tends to spill over into the family atmosphere. What an excellent reason to ask God to fill us with His beautiful Holy Spirit, so His Living Water overflows into our home! (If you’re looking for practical information about how God’s Spirit empowers us, please look for my new book, The Well, The Art of Drawing Out Authentic Conversations.)
Obviously, since I worked to cultivate it in my life, gratitude and contentment weren’t the most natural thing for me. When I think about people who seem to have the natural habit of gratefulness, they are also devoted to others. It’s really refreshing to be around them.
As we devote ourselves to those we love, may we love freely from a grateful heart! Merry Christmas to you and those you love!
We Are Grateful For YOU!
We’re so grateful for YOU. We always call you our listening and reading friends. Words matter. We never say listeners or audience, as some may. Why? Because we’re so happy to be companions together with you in this life. You are a friend. Together we make up a community of people who love to think about spiritual truths. I am grateful to God for you.
In Case You’re Looking for My New Book
If you opened today’s blog looking for my wonderful new book, I don’t want to disappoint you. Click here for The Well: The Art of Drawing Out Authentic Conversations. (For direct access to our FREE podcasts, interviews, and blogs, click here.)
I know it sounds braggadocios to call my own book wonderful, but really I’m acknowledging how hard our friends at Elk Lake Publishing worked on this project. Because of THEM the book truly is wonderful. We’re grateful for them!
May we pray together?
Dear good Father, as we celebrate your Son, help us remember to devote ourselves to others, as He did. Teach us how to have grateful hearts. Open our eyes to all the blessings we enjoy today, especially the loving devotion of true friends. Allow us to freely pass on some love to those around us. Fill our hearts with gratitude as we consider the God willing to join us on earth. A babe in a manger. Yes, we have much to praise You for, O Lord! With the angels, we shout Glory! Hallelujah! In Your Son’s name, we pray. Amen.
We LOVE to hear from YOU!
How is devotion tied to gratitude in your life? When have you experienced someone else’s devotion? What tips can you offer to help us teach our kids to be devoted friends?
Cathy Krafve, Speaker, Blogger, Podcaster, and author of The Well: The Art of Drawing Out Authentic Conversations. We welcome your stories, ideas, and questions at CathyKrafve.com. Truth with a Texas Twang.
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