Clergy Sermons

Eikev - Power of Gratitude

Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel once said: “If the only prayer you say throughout your life is “Thank You,” then that will be enough.”

I think that especially now – when the world seems like a difficult place on many levels – it is our gratitude that we can turn to help us through the day. Research has documented the impact of gratitude. Gratitude results in increase in positive emotions, and decrease in negative emotions like anger. Gratitude lifts our sense of self-worth. We deal with stress better. We not only become healthier - but are more likely to make more moral decisions. That is a lot! I would add one more thing: when life is less than perfect, gratitude allows you to move forward. Today I want to talk about how Jewish practice helps deepen gratitude and that it is hard work.

Why is gratitude so difficult? I believe that we are not wired for it. In fact, we are wired for complaint, feeling like it is never enough and overlooking life’s blessings. That is a piece of how the Torah describes the Israelites. Throughout our time in the wilderness, we grumbled and complained. “There’s not enough food!” “Where’s the water?!” – even though it always appeared. “We don’t like this manna!” – even though it may have been delicious. We get so focus on our travails when don’t see the gifts that exist alongside them.

Moses worried that even when there was plenty – we would lack gratitude. Look at p. 1041, Deut. 8:12: When you have eaten your fill, and have built fine houses to live in, and your herds and flocks have multiplied, and your silver and gold have increased, and everything you own has prospered, beware lest your heart grow proud and your forget the Lord your God – who freed you from the land of Egypt, the house of bondage.” We get so used to our gifts, we stop seeing them. Move forward to Vs. 17: “and you say to yourselves: My own power and might of my own had have won this wealth for me.” We become arrogant.

Moses worries that as things get good – we forget to be grateful. We see things through ego – taking all of the credit and not having perspective to see where blessings came from – and always want more, more, more. Wendy Mogul, who wrote the wise parenting book The Blessing of a Skinned Knee shares the ancient adage: “One who has one hundred wants two hundred.”

Moses teaches several responses to our ingrained ingratitude that can guide us:

First, he teaches to us to remember history and story. For Moses, the worst thing we could do is forget how we came from slavery to freedom; how we were sustained in the wilderness. Moses revolutionary idea is to engrave on the people’s souls through teaching, holidays, prayer where we came from, what we overcame, how we were cared for.

In telling our story of where we came from, Moses hopes to instill a mindset that we do not deserve credit for all of our accomplishments – there was so much that went into it. In a sweet book, called Thanks a Thousand, by A.J. Jacobs, the author seeks to thank everyone who made his morning cup of coffee at Starbuck’s possible. He thanks the miners in Chile who got the copper for the wiring in the coffee roasters, the pest control worker at the coffee warehouse, the person who invented that plastic lid, the trucker, barista and growers. Over the course of his book, he thanked over 964 people. His point is that so many people had a hand in the blessings we enjoy every day. We are not the sole authors of our many blessings – we owe a debt to so many who came before us and who live at this moment. Gratitude is a mindset which sees that truth.

Second, Moses teaches us this ritual of saying thank you for everything! Go back to vs. 10. V’achalta, v’savata, u’beracha – you will eat, be satisfied and you will bless. This verse is the origin of the Blessing after Meals. At a time when we have just enjoyed a good meal – take a moment to express gratitude. We pause and give thanks. Saying a blessing helps us be in the moment. Rather than eating on the run, we take a moment to appreciate the blessing of food. I want to encourage you to embrace this as a spiritual practice if you don’t do it already. You’ll create space to be grateful for all the went into the food you ate. You’ll appreciate that the food you just ate is a blessing. It is not just gratitude for food, blessings are said throughout the day to create gratitude as part of our mindset. Rabbi Jonathan Sacks on blessed memory wrote: “Jewish prayer is an ongoing seminar in gratitude. Birkat ha-Shachar, ‘the Dawn Blessings’ said at the start of morning prayers each day, form a litany of thanksgiving for life itself: for the human body, the physical world, land to stand on and eyes to see with. Prayer book page 103 – look at each of those blessings. The first words we say each morning –Modeh Ani, “I thank you” – mean that we begin each day by giving thanks.” You are supposed to say 100 blessings a day. Throughout the day we increase our awareness of our good fortune and say thank you.

Third, Moses teaches us to nurture gratitude by redirecting our desires. Move forward to 10:18 (p. 1049): “God upholds the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the strangers – giving food and clothing. You too must love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. As we think about food and clothes – things we often take for granted or just focus on our wants – first we give thanks and then we remind ourselves that the most godly act is to give food to those in need (and in Sarah’s case books to those who want to read). We redirect our desires from self to others and realize there is so much we can do. Gratitude for our blessings moves us to face realities of where people don’t have these basics: 47 million Americans are hungry. That's already an unconscionable number, and there are changes on the horizon that will see it increase. 2^nd Harvest Food Bank serves 500,000 people every month. Donate. Volunteer. Gratitude which results in opening our eyes. Acting based on that gratitude changes us as we realize we can make a difference. We are blessed with abundance. Let’s share it with others – and in so doing, we emulate God.

Let gratitude fill your life. Let it slow you down so that you can acknowledge all of the blessings you might take for granted. Let your awareness grow of blessings you overlook. Say a blessing – maybe use the Hebrew or perhaps say your own blessing from the heart. Let your gratitude drive you to acts of caring and sharing blessing. Start a gratitude journal – it will change you. Ask simple questions:

What simple joy or pleasure have I experienced today?

Who are I grateful for today?

What am I proud of?

What in nature makes me smile?

Who can I thank? A teacher, someone who hosted me, a doctor or nurse, a server, a checkout clerk?

One last story: In the confusion that followed Abraham Lincoln’s assassination in 1865, his pockets were emptied into a box. Years later, it was passed from a son to a granddaughter, who in 1937 gave it to the Library the wallet. The wallet had 8 newspaper clippings that were all laudatory of the President. Lincoln, who withstood brutal criticism apparently cut out the articles that praised him and put them in his wallet. I imagine that reading about gratitude and appreciation helped him through the tough times. We all need praise and appreciation. Let words of gratitude be on our lips and in our hearts – and maybe even in our wallets. Shabbat Shalom.