Gratitude
“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order,and confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.” ~ Melody Beattie
An attitude of gratitude tunes us in to the good things that happen. It’s impossible to feel grateful and upset or angry at the same time. So, first of all, it feels good. Being grateful creates the attitude of “I have” rather than “I don’t have,” and that’s the consciousness that perpetuates more good things happening. The more we experience this consciousness, the more it becomes a habit. We begin to expect it, and then we see it.
SPIRITUAL PRACTICES
Practice Gratitude:
Either verbally or on paper, recall the things that happened yesterday that you are grateful for. Be grateful for the big and small things – even the lessons and challenges. What good might come from those challenges?
Actively Appreciate Everything:
As you go through your day, take a moment to appreciate what’s around you. Find something – the beautiful sky, the grass, the flowers, even the powerful storm or giant raindrops. Allow this sense of appreciation to flow into more and more things. As you drive or walk, appreciate the drivers around you and the traffic lights that are there to keep you safe. Find something to appreciate every chance you get.
Smartphone Gratitude:
These days, every smartphone has a “Note Pad” app. Start a “Gratitude” page and as you go through the day, something wonderful will happen to you. Write it in your gratitude page. Then, in the morning before breakfast, review the previous day’s gratitude page, erase it, and start anew. If you don’t have a smartphone, that’s something else to be grateful for. A little notebook and pencil works just as well.
There’s ALWAYS plenty to be thankful for, and for more reminders, enjoy this classic in our Serendipity section by Brother David Steindl-Rast.
Daily Gratitude Session:
We start our spiritual practices each day reflecting on the things we’re grateful for. Usually, we start with what’s happened since the last time we did a gratitude session. And, most of the time, that means yesterday.
Gratitude Journal:
Each day, write three things, people, or events you feel grateful for. The more you can actually feel it, the better it is, and the better off you’ll be. You can download a FREE Gratitude Journal (click here), with full instructions and suggestions, courtesy of Dr. Dennis Merritt Jones.
In her audio “Qualities Of God: Wholeness,” Dr. Toni LaMotta explains how she writes a list of 100 things she’s grateful for from the day before in her journal. That sounds like a lot, but she says that knowing she has to come up with 100 things tomorrow puts her in a place of being more aware today of the good things that are happening. It’s your journal, you can do it your way. Aren’t you grateful that you have the choice?
Gratitude Jar:
In January, start with an empty jar and fill it with notes about good things that happen throughout the year. Then, on New Year’s Eve, empty it and see what good stuff happened!
Gratitude In Detail:
Instead of expressing gratitude for many things and not thinking too much about them, choose just one thing you’re grateful for and get into the details. Write 5 – 10 statements of specific things you’re grateful for in this person or situation.
When You Can’t Be Grateful:
Read, recite, or remember the 4th pathway: I always remember I have everything I need to enjoy my here and now unless I am letting my consciousness be dominated by demands and expectations based on the dead past or the imagined future.