From Hateful to Grateful

• By candidasullivan
• November 15, 2025
• No Comments

Reading through my Facebook memories is a beautiful glimpse of how much I’ve grown. I can truly see how far I’ve come, especially from those early days.

One thing that always touches me is how much I complained back then. Almost every post was a complaint. No wonder God couldn’t use me to do His work at that time — I wasn’t ready.

Most of my life revolved around me and what I wanted. I rarely asked God what He wanted or why He created me. I lived selfishly and wasn’t truly grateful for what I had.

God opened my eyes with one simple question:
What if you’re complaining about something someone else is praying for?

That question changed everything. At any moment, we could lose the things we take for granted. So I began asking God to help me reframe my perspective.

Grocery shopping was one of the things I often complained about — until God helped me see it differently.

Complaint: Trying to figure out what to eat.
Blessing: You get to choose what to eat.

Complaint: I don’t like grocery shopping.
Blessing: You have the strength to walk through the store and buy food for your family.

Complaint: Everything is so expensive.
Blessing: You’re paying for convenience. Someone else gathered the food — you just show up and purchase it.

Then it really hit me — I had money to buy food for my kids. What if there’s a mom somewhere praying for the very blessing I was complaining about? From that day forward, I saw it all differently.

Work was another thing I used to complain about. Until I lay in bed for months, praying for the health to work again. When God restored my strength, I thanked Him for the opportunity instead of grumbling about it.

Flipping my complaints to gratitude changed my life. It took me from hateful to grateful.

Now I look for the blessings and praise God for them. When I notice a familiar complaint rise up, I pause and pray. Sometimes, I ask God to forgive my selfishness and help me see through His eyes.

The more I do this, the more gratitude fills my heart. My life truly is beautiful. When I pause long enough to appreciate all that I have — especially the things money can’t buy — I find joy in it all.

1 Thessalonians 5:18 (KJV)
In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.