I am thankful that...life is good
One of the simplest and greatest insights I have ever learned is that a heart of gratitude is essential to true happiness. I have always believed that love is the foundation to a truly blessed life and I still do. However, we can be loved unconditionally and even learn to love ourselves and others without practicing gratitude.
There is a difference between knowing that someone loves us and being grateful that he or she accepts us just the way we are. Knowing we are loved, we might take it for granted or even reject that love. However, if we are thankful that we are loved and accepted unconditionally, we are more likely to receive that love with joy and appreciation. Gratitude causes us to cherish and value something. This, in turn, brings us joy. There is a difference between loving someone’s sense of humor and being thankful for the times of laughter we enjoy with him or her. There is also a difference between loving our innate strengths and talents and being thankful that we can use them to help and bless others.
A very effective way to increase our daily experience of gratitude and joy is to make it a habit to list at least three things we are thankful for at the end of each day. I remember when I first started doing this years ago. I was surprised by how many little things were real blessings to my day. I typically would not have thought much of them and probably would have taken them for granted. And I am talking about simple things like being thankful for having good weather so I could ride my bike, watching a funny movie with my family, discussing the day's events with my husband, running into an old friend, getting a big hug from my son, hearing a new song I like, and so on.
The more I disciplined myself to take notice of the good things in life, the more I began to recognize just how much there is to be thankful for. Napeoleon Hill said, "Your big opportunity may be right where you are now." Our greatest opportunity right now is to appreciate life, know that it is good, and enjoy it. We seize that opportunity every time we reflect on our blessings and give thanks!
* * *
What you focus on expands, and when you focus on the goodness in your life, you create more of it. Opportunities, relationships, even money flowed my way when I learned to be grateful no matter what happened in my life. ~Oprah Winfrey
* * *
Joy is a heart full and a mind purified by gratitude. ~Marietta McCarty
* * *
Gratefulness is the key to a happy life that we hold in our hands, because if we are not grateful, then no matter how much we have we will not be happy -- because we will always want to have something else or something more. ~ David Steindl-Rast
* * *
Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace and gratitude. ~- Denis Waitley
Krystal Kuehn, MA, LPC, LLP, NCC is a psychotherapist, author, teacher & musician. She is the cofounder of New Day Counseling, a family couples counseling and child teen counseling center, BeHappy4Life.com, an award-winning, self-help and inspirational site where you can find hundreds of free resources, insights & words of inspiration to change your life, and Baby-Poems.com where you can find beautiful baby poems, baby quotes, cute sayings & baby videos that will touch your heart & increase your joy & gratitude for the children you love & enjoy! Check out Krystal's new Be Your Best blog and Words of Inspiration blog!
<< Go Back to Krystal's Give Thanks Journal Home
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment