Fourth, have gratitude for our ….

Fourth, have gratitude for our friends. Jesus speaks the word “friend” with reverence. “Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.” (John 15:14.) Real friends are like the savior: patient, kind, long-suffering, they put up with our quirks, and forgive our mistakes.

The fifth is gratitude for our country. “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). Those who made the supreme sacrifice deserve our gratitude, which should not be confined solely to Memorial Day and Veterans Day.

Sixth and most significant is gratitude for our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Be thankful for the one whose gospel answers life’s greatest questions: Where did we come from? Why are we here? Where does my spirit go when I die? He teaches us how to pray, live, die and, most importantly, how to live eternally.

He is our master and our savior. The Son of God, the author of our salvation who beckons, “Follow me” (Matt. 4:19). “Let us follow him. Let us emulate his example. Let us obey his word. By so doing, we give to him the divine gift of gratitude.”