The story is told of a mother and her 4-year-old daughter who were strolling through an open-air market. As the little girl stared at a large pile of oranges, a generous vendor took one from the table and gave it to her.

"What do you say to the nice man?" the mother asked her daughter. The little girl looked at the orange, then thrust it toward the man and said, "Peel it!"

Thankfulness is something we learn and grow into. What might be excusable in a 4-year-old would be rude and ungrateful from an older child or adult.

Yet, how easy it is to fall into the trap of responding to God's gracious gifts by thinking, "This is nice, but I'd like a little more."

An attitude of gratitude toward God is a mark of a developing spiritual maturity. In Paul's letter to the growing Christians in Ephesus, his challenge to follow Christ included "giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Eph. 5:20).

Today, let's practice thankfulness to God—instead of complaining about what we don't have, instead of fuming about the unfairness of life, instead of asking for more for ourselves.

Instead of saying "Peel it!" let's say "Thanks."  — David C. McCasland