**The Braided Connection: Faith, Hope, and Charity**
On Thanksgiving morning, I gathered with my prayer group, as we do every Thursday. Our focus was on the connection between faith, hope, charity, with gratitude. During the prayer, I saw a braid made of faith, hope, and charity. This image symbolized more than mere connection; it portrayed an active creation of strength. I saw myself braiding beautiful dark hair, each strand representing faith, hope, charity.
**Gratitude Beyond Circumstances**
I questioned whether the braid itself was gratitude. The response was clear: gratitude can exist independently of faith, hope, and charity. For example, being grateful for food or our bodies doesn’t always reflect faith or charity. However, when these virtues intertwine, they form a robust rope that helps us ascend difficult circumstances with newfound strength.
**The Role of Patience and Forgiveness**
Patience and forgiveness are also crucial to nurturing gratitude. In my vision, silver, green and red threads of these virtues weaved into the braid, symbolizing their contribution to the strength of our lives’ rope. Embracing these qualities allows us to access a higher level of gratitude and understanding.
**Gratitude of the Soul**
An extraordinary experience taught me gratitude’s profound power. After my son Devon’s ordeal with kidnapping, I was guided by God to find gratitude for the kidnappers themselves, a daunting task indeed. Initially resistant, I came to realize the kidnapping prevented potentially worse outcomes had he gotten away with his lie and sneaking down to Mexico.
This ability to actually have gratitude for Devon’s kidnappers, facilitated healing beyond my comprehension—a testament to gratitude’s transformative power.
**Higher Gratitude: A Healing Force**
Gratitude extends beyond appreciation for the tangible. When infused with faith, hope, charity, patience, and forgiveness, gratitude transcends expectations, becoming a profound force of healing. This sentiment resonates with a quote by Dieter F. Uchtdorf about “gratitude of the soul,” which surpasses life’s challenges. It enriches our hearts and minds while affirming gratitude is not reactive, but proactive.
**Conclusion**
As you read this, Thanksgiving may have passed, but the invitation to nurture daily gratitude remains. In life’s challenges, these experiences are strands strengthening your spiritual rope. Infusing gratitude with faith to act upon your belief in Christ, hope to envision and trust in favorable outcomes, charity, offering the love of Christ combined with, patience and forgiveness uplifts you to a higher vision, grounding you in mortal experience while aspiring to divine glory.