Gracepoint Church, Peabody
A man owned a small estate. One day he decided to sell it, and he hired a real estate agent. He told the agent to write an ad that described the house and the land.
The ad was prepared, and the owner asked the agent to read it to him before it was published in the paper. After the agent finished reading the ad the first time, the owner requested that it be read again. So the real estate agent read the description of the house and land one more time.
When the owner heard the description a second time, he exclaimed, “I’ve been looking for an estate like that all my life, and I didn’t know that I already owned it!”
He decided to keep his property.
I’m convinced one of the secrets to contentment is in developing gratitude for what we already have instead of constantly focusing on what we don’t. Then, after developing the ability to be contented with what we have, we need the discipline to maintain that ability day after day after day.
This Thanksgiving, let’s be grateful for what we have before we start making the long lists of the things we want.