Gratitude is something we could all practice a little more of. If we are really honest with ourselves, we are always seemingly chasing the next shiny object. The new car, that new house, the next vacation, the newest phone, the most prestigious school, etc. It is the American dream after all! It is what we are supposed to do, right? I would argue that while those those things are not at all bad in and of themselves, the direction our hearts are orientated toward is what causes those things to be our downfall and the causes of many of our ailments like depression and anxiety. Where our treasure is, there our heart will be also.
Our culture is increasingly bent on driving us toward materialism, and it is always finding new ways to keep our attention hooked. Social media has been the biggest proponent of this, and I believe synonymously, it is one of the biggest proponents of anxiety and depression in our daily lives. Media is always keeping us in a state of comparison. Comparison to our families, friends, enemies, and even ourselves. Remember, comparison is the thief of joy. The media wants us to crave more and more and to keep us in a mode of insatiable desire to make us spend more money.
Christ provides us with a different path. Not one that necessarily claims that less is more, but one that allows us to be thankful for whatever portion He provides for us. Recall from Matthew 6 where Our Lord states,
22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy,[c] your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eyes are unhealthy,[d] your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness! 24 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life[e]? 28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
We must begin to take positive steps to help us shift our mindsets toward virtue. Gratitude is known to be a healing emotion. We cannot be anxious and thankful at the same time. The Lord always gives us what we need in the moment, and often times, especially in America, we have excess. We worship the God who multiplied the fish and the loaves. We can always trust Him to provide what we need, exactly when we need it.
If I may offer some advice, what I have found helpful is taking a healthy fast from social media. Instead, pivot toward something that can assist in your peace and growth with the Lord. Prayer, meditation, lectio divina, journaling, good reading, exercise, and creative hobbies are all excellent ways to reorient the body, mind, and soul toward holiness and growth in sanctification.
Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam.
Ave Christus Rex.