It’s been a hard month. My goal is to have ten million people to start a gratitude practice for at least a year because it will change how they view life. I’m about 9,996,500 people shy of my goal. I’ve helped thousands of people, but I want to help a lot more.
I’ve been reaching out to podcasters to see if they would want to bring me on their show.
Mostly silence in return.
I did get a response back from two of 100 podcasters that I reached out to.
That’s not terrible, but it is a little disheartening. I know a gratitude practice can help a lot of people, but I need to be able to explain how it can help them. If I don’t get a chance then I don’t get to help as many people as I would like.
After the last rejection, I decided to pray for help. As I was praying I realized that I was doing a lot of asking and not a lot of giving. I decided to change my praying style. I decided to send some gratitude out to my divine creator.
I’m not going to pretend like I know what exactly God is. I grew up Lutheran and studied Buddhism. I know something beautiful is out there doing amazing things, but I’m not sure how to define it.
I believe that God is woven throughout the whole fabric of life. I believe that I’m here on this earth for a purpose greater than myself. I’m very thankful for this even when it doesn’t work out the way that I hoped.
I found that when I prayed for God’s help I put the burden on God. I don’t think that is fair. It usually puts me in a bad mood. I expect God to take care of all my problems.
"Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is a spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude." Denis Waitley
The interesting part is when I thank God for all the opportunities that he has put before me then more opportunities seem to appear. This mental switch in how I communicate with God has made a huge difference. It has empowered me to utilize God’s resources to make my life better for myself and others. When I do appreciate what I have, I'm healthier and have more energy.
Your Pain
My daily existence is not about trying to solve anything. It's about being grateful for what I do have in my life.
There is always something else to solve. Sometimes it's back pain, other days it's energy levels, and some days I just want to have more fun.
Life will never be perfect.
Let me repeat that.
Life will never be perfect.
It's a struggle we all have to endure and enjoy.
We get to choose where we put our thoughts. We can focus on being grateful and making the most of what we have, or we can choose to dwell in the pain.
We have the free will to direct our thoughts and savor our emotions. God gives us opportunities to create our experiences.
That's all we can expect from God. We can expect more, but it usually doesn’t help.
We have an opportunity that most living things don't have. You are very lucky to be reading these words. You have the ability to share yourself with others. You have the ability to take a sip of clean water when you want it.
You have so many opportunities and it's so important to be grateful for them. Without God, this Earth, mother nature, Divine spirit, etc. we wouldn't be here.
You've Already Won
You have a better chance of winning the lottery 10x over than you do of being who you are.
That's extraordinary!
That should not be taken lightly. You wake up every morning and cash in a lottery ticket. Sometimes it's a big winner and sometimes not so much, but it's always a winner if you can find some microgratitude in the things God has given to you today.
I want you to try something for me. It will only take 10 seconds. Do you have a drink in front of you?
If not go and get one.
Ok, so now that you have a drink I want you take a Grateful Sip. A sip of your drink, but with a slight twist. I want you to think about how lucky you are to have that drink in front of you. How amazing it is that you are able to put that straw, cup, mug, or glass to your lips and take a swig?
You get to nourish your body with a drink whenever you want. That’s a beautiful gift from God/Universe.
Now focus on being with this sip 100%.
- How does it feel when the cup hits your lips?
- How does it feel when the liquid hits your tongue?
- How does it feel when you swallow?
- How does it feel when you take a moment to appreciate the simple beauty of taking a sip of your drink?
When you allow yourself to truly appreciate the small moment, you can see the power of gratitude.You focused your thoughts and feelings on enjoying it for all that it was worth.
This is spiritual gratitude at its finest. You are using the moment to appreciate everything you are feeling.
You are so very lucky to be alive. You have to treat every moment accordingly.
The hard part is that our brains are wired for fear. They are wired this way to keep us alive. It comes from thousands of years of evolution.
We can’t just turn this off. We have to practice at noticing it and being grateful for what life does offer us. It’s this practice that gets us closer to God.
When we forget to be grateful we need to have reminders to be grateful for the everyday things that God provides.
I believe that God has put us on this earth for a purpose. A higher purpose.
You might not know what your grand purpose is right now and that’s ok. You probably have everyday purposes that are very important. Maybe your purpose might be to love and provide for your family. Maybe it’s to love and care for your dogs.
I’m here to help ten million people start and keep a gratitude journal. The ripple effect will be endless. I know I’ll get there with everyone’s help and that includes God. It’s just a matter of time.
Start Small
Before you go on a search for your purpose I suggest you start small. Just try silently saying “Thank you” to God or whatever you believe before you take your first bite at a meal. It will help you slow down and appreciate the food that you are able to afford and that it will nourish your body.
That’s it. The hard part will be remembering to do it. I still forget and I’ve been doing it for months.
Once you have this down, then you can go a little deeper.
Try keeping a Spiritual Gratitude journal and writing down or recording what opportunities you are grateful for at the beginning of each day. It could be one thing or five.
My last Spiritual Gratitude journal looked like this:
- I’m grateful for the opportunity to breathe oxygen because it keeps me alive and able to help more people feel grateful in their life.
- I’m grateful to God for the opportunity to love my son because he usually finds a way to make me laugh.
- I’m grateful to the Universe for the opportunity to use the internet because I can share my ideas with anyone in the world.
You can use God and Universe interchangeably. The idea is to show appreciation to whoever or whatever helped make this all possible. Some people don’t believe in God, but they can always show gratitude toward the universe for the amazing resources that it provides.
That’s it! It’s a practice that can do wonders for your happiness and resilience.
When you take the time to pause and feel grateful for all the things God offers you then you are more likely to use your opportunities to the best of your abilities.
Check out when the next Bring Gratitude 30 Day Challenge begins. You can join us and start creating a grateful and resilient mindset.