Generosity

A phrase that I always remember from my days in the seminary is, "Attitude of Gratitude." We always need a spirit of gratitude, gratefulness, thankfulness, appreciation in our lives. God has truly blessed us with the gifts, qualities, resources that we need. Our readings for this weekend gives us a glimpse of the generosity that God has for us. It begins with the reading from the prophet Isaiah, 55:6-9. The prophet says, "Let the scoundrel forsake his way, and the wicked his thoughts; let him turn to the Lord for mercy; to our God who is generous in forgiving." We know that God is rich in love, mercy, forgiveness, and compassion. Everything that God shows us is unconditional. This thought continues in the gospel from Saint Matthew, 20:1-16a. We listened to this gospel on a recent weekday and it is about the landowner who went out to hire laborers. He went out five times and told those he hired that they would receive the usual daily wage. When the time came for them to receive their payment they all received the same thing, no matter how long they had been working. Like the landowner said to the one hired hand, "Are you envious because I am generous?" The landowner said that they all agreed to the same daily wage and he did not show any partiality. That is key because God shows no partiality with us. He treats us equally and He gives us all the grace and strength that we need to live our lives, our faith to the fullest. Many times we think as human beings do, but we need to think like God, whose ways are not our ways or our thoughts are not His thoughts. The world would be a different place if we kept that in mind and lived it because we would truly know the generosity of God and in that, have an attitude of gratitude. Have a blessed weekend!!!