The Golden Cord Quotes

“If we look at the Book of Hebrews (and combine all the words that convey the idea of gratitude to God and even to human beings) we notice that it is used more than a thousand times. This tells us that if we would pray effectively we must cultivate a kind of ontology (nature of being) of gratitude which creates a cosmology of praise. Gratitude is in itself a spiritual practice that can transform our world. It is not a state of mind — but of being. It is intrinsically a grammar of being, and spirituality that communicates authenticity. For the believer, it is the environment within which their spiritual life has its ebb and flow. The way each of us goes about showing gratitude may differ but, for the believer who has an effective prayer life, this mode of being in the world is indispensable. The believer’s relationship with God and the created world, which he/she believes is the gift of a gracious God to humankind, calls forth this flow of gratitude in the believer. The practice of gratitude in prayer can increase our ability to deal with the circumstances that befall us. A prayer of gratitude is a way of looking beyond the causality of life and, instead of adapting a “ho-hum” attitude, returning to joy by being surprised by the wonder in the so-called mundane.”
― Adonijah O. Ogbonnaya, The Golden Cord: The Prophetic Alchemy of the Lord’s Prayer