Count It All Joy

I feel rather certain in saying that most anyone reading this article failed to find “gratitude” within a mile of their list of emotions at the moment they were finally forced to reconcile with the damage, broken hearts, and ocean of tears spawned by their addiction. I certainly was devoid of the urge to look skyward and point to my creator and send up an “ataboy” for allowing such a calamity. I opted for more of the “why me” response rather than the appreciative one. Thus, I’m certainly no one to judge anyone else’s failure to exercise gratitude in those treacherous times.However, as hindsight often works, I came to realize that most of us were in the midst of being given a gift, a miraculous gift, that some aren’t so fortunate to receive for which we should have had immense gratitude.Though we all likely failed to recognize this gift, and understandably so, our journey through the remainder of our recovered lives should certainly include a cornucopia of gratitude if we expect to find continued success.

As much as humility or forgiveness are absolute requirements for those traversing a successful recovery; gratitude is as critical. It’s not simply a matter of being appreciative for having food, still having a career, still sharing the love of family members, or even still breathing. Those are obvious and relatively easy. When we exhibit a gratitude of depth, which I would best describe as a worldview that mines gratitude from some of the darkest trenches of our lives; that’s when we’ve truly reached the appropriate level of gratitude. A few verses emphasize this point. James 1:2-4 says, “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” The point here is the greater the trial, the more appreciative we should be. I’m sure that sounds somewhat absurd. Who would appreciate hard times and why? Because, if we meet them with earnestness, honesty, steadfastness and even (yes, that word again) gratitude, the person that exits the other side is far greater than the one that entered. It’s basically God’s boot camp.Never has a man or woman exited the bus at Paris Island as the soldier the marines want. It’s only after constant pounding like the hammer of a blacksmith that the finished product is realized and a more “perfect and complete” marine emerges. Recovery can offer a similar pounding, considering the humiliation, the emotional cost, and the work required to overcome. Yet, much like the proud marine donning his stripes for the first time on the parade grounds, we too have to find gratitude for the scars that birthed a better person. Therefore, in your prayers, certainly thank God for all of the good things in your life, but don’t forget the gratitude for the trials that made them possible.

— A Grateful Recovering Dentist —