A few months ago, my family and I were sitting in church and my father in law was preaching the sermon. He asked everyone if they had a lot of silver or gold. My eldest son, Cody, 7 at the time, immediately shot his hand in the air and declared he had $20.50. I don’t think there was one person in the crowd that day that didn’t smile at his comment.
Each of us has one life to live, and each of us go through many different kinds of hard. Some of us have struggled our whole lives with mental health. Some of us come from broken families. Some of us have battled cancer or other illnesses or lost someone we loved dearly to this battle. We have a choice: We can either decide to see the good gifts we do have and the abundance of “silver and gold,” or we can decide to sit in the pain and heartache and allow it to cripple us.
Did you know that if you make the conscious choice to list 3 things you are thankful for each day for 21 days, you will be happier? Studies show this to be true, and I can attest to it in my personal life as well. At the start of the pandemic of 2020, my friend gave me a gift bag full of goodies. One of those goodies is a gratitude journal which I faithfully used daily for quite a few months. I noticed a big difference not only in my attitude toward life but also in how patient I was with my kids, how in love I started to feel with my family and husband, and how in love I started to be with my life. We are not rich with silver and gold, although Cody may think so, but keeping track of what I am thankful for taught me that we are indeed rich in the things that matter in life. Rich in love, rich in fun, rich in family, rich in Jesus…abundantly blessed. We have food on the table each day, as much coffee as we could ever need, clothes that keep us warm, and many other things that really are luxury items.
Do I have a house that desperately needs renovated? Yes. But does it shelter us from the wind and rain? Also yes. Does my car need a new paint job? Yes. But does it get me from point A to point B? Also yes. I could go on and on, but you get my point.
Have you thought about what you are grateful for today? Have you tried to write out what you’re thankful for each day for a month? I would encourage and challenge you to give it a go. Write it down, or better yet, ask a friend if you can send her a text each day to let her know what you’re thankful for today. Maybe she will join you and you can both revel and take joy in the good vibes you have at the end of the month. I would love to hear how you are reflecting or keeping track of what you’re grateful for, and if you end up doing the challenge, I would love to hear how you’re feeling afterward.
