Most years at work we reward our employees with one to three bonuses, depending on how the company performs and based on the profits for the year. As I have done this, I have made this observation: For a few days after distributing the bonuses, I will receive a few e-mails with expressions of thanks and a few sincere personal thank-yous, but, in the nearly twenty years of doing this, only 5 to 15 percent of those who receive bonuses ever say, “Thank you.”

I don’t believe this is an atypical phenomenon; it’s simply an indication that most people are not as grateful as they could be. In fact, I believe that ingratitude is a trait of the natural man, a trait we must learn to recognize and guard against. “Ingratitude is the attitude of being unaware or not recognizing when someone has assisted us or helped us or, even worse, when we know we have been helped and have not given thanks privately or publicly” (Robert D. Hales, “Gratitude for the Goodness of God, April 1992 General Conference).