Several years ago, on a visit to our parents in Colorado, Kyle found his giant childhood tub of Legos, and we decided to bring it home for Damien. When I gave it to him, he said,
"Thanks Mom!"
Damien has always loved receiving presents. (Have you ever seen the video of the thankful kid whose mom gave him an avocado? They could be brothers.) Since the plastic bin had an opaque lid on it, Damien had no idea what was inside, but he was just thankful to get something from us. When he lifted the lid, his eyes lit up a little more; he hadn't spent much time with Legos yet, but he knew, vaguely, that they were a cool toy- especially because Kyle had shared stories of having used them. With a little more conviction, he looked up at me and said,
"Thanks Mom!!"
He spent the next few hours building something. I'm sure it was totally magnificent and unrecognizable, as the majority of toddler sculptures are. It took him a while to get the hang of them and figure out what he could do with them, but eventually he came running to show me his creation with excitement overflowing from his entire being. He hugged me tight and said, with even greater understanding,
"Thanks, Mom."
I told him how awesome he was at building already, and mentioned that he could build all kinds of amazing things with his Legos. He built an entire battlefield of creations, and came back one more time to tell me, ever-so-seriously,
"Thank you, mom."
Having experienced the awesomeness of the gift he'd been given, he began to comprehend the potential in that box full of Legos. He made robot after building after monster after tower. Years later, I still find him often at his box of Legos after hours of intense building. He doesn't have to thank me anymore; I already know that he has developed the quality, rather than the act, of gratitude in his heart, because he continues to use his gift.
This experience with stages of thankfulness can be applied to any gift from God, but in my life no gift has planted more fruitful seeds of gratitude in my heart than the gift of Christ and His atoning sacrifice.
When we first learn this gift has been given to us, it's like a beautifully wrapped box. We don't really understand what's inside it yet, but we are thankful to have received it. We casually say,
"Thanks, God."
At some point, we open it. We realize what's inside. We have heard about it from those who have used it in the past, and we think it sounds pretty cool. And with increased sincerity, we say,
"Oh, thanks, God."
And then we use it for the first time. We experience what we can do with it. We feel the joy of casting a burden on the Lord, Jesus Christ, and in awe we pray,
"Wow, thanks, God!"
And for a while, we think we have figured out the purpose of the gift. But eventually, something comes along that reminds us that we can use it again, in another way. Perhaps we fail. Perhaps we lose someone. Perhaps we wander from our course and can't find our way. Perhaps we feel pain. Perhaps we battle inner demons. Whatever it is, we realize that we can use the Atonement again in another way, to right another wrong. And we fall on our knees and say,
"Thank you, God."
Over time, having experienced the awesomeness of the gift we've been given, we may begin to comprehend its potential. We use it to heal sorrow after sin after pain after grief. Years pass, as we return to the feet of our Saviour. We don't always express our gratitude in words anymore, but we don't have to; our Father knows that we have developed thankful hearts, because we continue to use that greatest of gifts, year after year.
I believe that God never asks anything of us just "because He says so." There's always a reason. A blessing He wants us to have, and a behavior upon which that blessing is dependent. He, knowing our hearts, surely has no need for us to utter vocal gratitude when we feel it- He already knows! I'm sure He loves to hear it, but I believe He has a greater reason to counsel us to learn gratitude. We thank Him, not for Him, but for us. When we have grateful hearts, we remember the gifts we have been given, and we use them again and again. I believe that God asks us to be thankful because He knows the formula for Happiness. Our actions, then, are what truly speak to Him:
"Thanks, God."
