Ungrateful hearts are afflicted with a disease called “more.”  No matter how much they have, it’s never enough.  Unbridled desire runs rampant, and joy and contentment get trampled in the stampede.  Prosperity lays an invisible trap called ingratitude.  The more prosperous I am, the less gratitude I feel.   Prosperity no longer lights the fire of thanksgiving in my heart.

Prosperity makes me a slave to the things in my life.  I look at all the things I own without realizing they own me.  I know that something is wrong; I used to be thankful for the good things in life, but now they drive me crazy.  No matter how much I have, I can’t get enough.  I need more, and more, and more.  The slavery to more drove gratitude from my heart.

What I really need is food, shelter, and love.  I need to take the test of thankfulness.  This is the test: I will make a list of twenty things for which I am grateful.  If I can’t come up with at least twenty items on my list, then ingratitude is in control, and I need to make major changes in the business of life until the fire of thanksgiving burns brightly in my heart.  I won’t allow what I have, or what I don’t have, to ruin my life.  I will live as if I am a thankful person.

Excerpt from :

Maximum Strength Positive Thinking : What to Say When You Talk to Your Mind

David J Abbott M.D.