I don’t know about you, but every now and again I can get extremely frustrated by circumstances that I can’t necessarily control.
I can become ungrateful, moody and a bit short with people from time to time.
Now, some of you who know me personally will find this hard to believe 🙂
As for the most part I am an upbeat person with a bubbly persona and a positive attitude, always trying to see the bright side of life, at least for the most part.
Occasionally though I rear my ugly side and I can get grumpy, quiet and distant.
Surely I’m not the only one! 🙂
Currently I’m having to isolate at home due to my health condition, which in effect will see me having to work from home until the end of January, which brings with it a number of challenging aspects that could cause me to become even more frustrated and upset. And yet I’m not!
Maybe that’s because I have learnt the importance of thankfulness and being grateful in the everyday moments of life.
I know for some people that when they read Scripture references such as 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (from The Passion Translation) where it says that “in the midst of everything [that they should] be always giving thanks, for this is God’s perfect plan for [us] in Christ Jesus” they struggle.
The New International Version puts it this way “give thanks in all circumstances;
for this is God’s will for you…”
Give thanks in all situations is this really possible? And it is part of God’s perfect plan, or His will for us – really!
How can you be thankful when your life has been literally been turned upside down by some traumatic experience?
The truth be told, we need to ‘give thanks’ and be grateful regardless! For in a single moment our entire lives can change. In 2020 Coronavirus literally shut down our world and we have been having to adapt ever since.
In this fast-paced world in which we live, with its constant changes, and unending deadlines and commitments, it is absolutely vital to take time each day to calm our busyness and recognise the importance of thankfulness.
You see, the act of thinking of just one thing that you are thankful for can help slow your heart rate, relax your muscles and joints, calm your mind, and bring an element of peace to your day regardless of how frenetic it has been.
God’s perfect plan
Could this be why in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 it says this is God’s perfect plan for us?
Afterall, God doesn’t want us constantly striving and stressing about things in life.
He wants us to live life to the full, and learn how to truly rest in Him.
Being thankful in all circumstances helps us develop an attitude of gratitude and as the Apostle Paul espouses in Philippians 4:10-14. He had learnt “the secret of being content in any and every situation.”
He had also found the recipe for being happy, (thankful) and he had come to know without a shadow of a doubt, that he could make it through anything in life, because of the One who made him who he was (refer to The Message).
John Hopkins studies and research has found that there is a direct correlation between having a positive attitude, being thankful, and your mental health. And ultimately it can even improve your physical health and well-being.
So for people who have rare diseases or disorders, or an invisible disability like Interstitial Lung Disease, Scleroderma and Raynaud’s learning the importance of thankfulness and developing a practice of gratitude can be quite beneficial.
As part of the RENEW Fatigue Study I was encouraged to create a practice of gratitude, because it can be quite challenging for people with Scleroderma to feel thankful for some things in life. Especially when in a single moment they can move from being ready to face the world and all its challenges – to barely being able to make it out of bed.
I found that by taking the time every evening for a month to log one or two things about people, things, or events for which I was thankful was quite helpful however.
The whole premise was that each day you would store these moments in either a literal piggy bank or via the app and once the month was over you were able to go back and review all those things that you had noted.
Being thankful in our everyday life and looking at those things that one can be thankful for, even if it is just the small things in life regardless how we are feeling, can have a huge positive impact on our health and well-being.
Over the past couple of months I’ve found that I relate to a number of quotes and images that have come across my Facebook feed like this one from S. C. Lourie;
“I just don’t think I’m looking for the big moments in life anymore. It’s more the simple ones that make for a beautiful day now. Like the sun rising and the moon dancing and the wind singing and the leaves grooving, and the kids laughing and music playing, butterflies twirling, heart-smiles staying… and me being present to witness all these little beautiful things. This is what makes for a happy and peaceful life, I’m sure.”
Another one reads; “If someone comes into your life and has a positive impact on you, be thankful that your paths crossed. And even if they can’t stay for some reason, be thankful that somehow they brought joy into your life, even if it was just for a short while. Life is change. People come and go, some stay, some don’t and that’s okay. Remember the good times and smile that it happened.”
We may not be able to control our circumstances, but we can control our attitude and responses towards them. That’s why creating a practice of gratitude, being thankful is so important 🙂
In 2019 the Thankfulness Project was started to encourage all New Zealanders promote the practical use of everyday thankfulness, as they believe that gratitude and thankfulness practiced daily creates better mental healthiness.
They have recognised that “when you think about what you do have and what is going well, instead of what you don’t have and what is going wrong, you will have a happier and more optimistic day.”
Why not challenge yourself to write down three things you are thankful for everyday, and why for the next week or so using the Thankful Journal page, which you can print off or download and review at a later stage. Alternatively you could check out the 25 Things I am Thankful for Personal Poster Challenge.
You might just be surprised by what you are thankful for!
At the end of the day we each need to learn the importance of thankfulness and how we can create a practice of gratitude – Blessings ’til next time 🙂
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