How often in your life do you sit down and count your blessings? How many times have you cast your mind to the past to recollect any of your family members, friends, course mates, colleagues, co-workers, family friends or even neighbours that have passed to the great beyond? If you can recall just one person who is close to you who has been lost to the cold hands of death in the past, then, it is enough to give thanks and praises to God who has kept you alive regardless of what is happening in your life right now.
Interestingly, some of our dear ones we hadlost in the past were those we never expected to be struck by death even in the next 20 to 30 years. Here we are, they’ve all gone. God’s plan is quite different from man’s plan. Also you should bear it in mind that God is not wicked and has full grasp of everything that happens in our lives. This truism emphasizes the importance of gratitude in daily life. Let’s always thank God as if we will not have another opportunity to praise and worship him anew. I strongly believe that the essence of our creation is worship and the best and most honourable form of worship in God’s sight is gratitude.
Gratitude is a forward drive for anyone who is keen on achieving success and living a fulfilled life. We must be grateful to God, our parents, our family, our friends and our loved ones for whatever “small” or “big” favours rendered to us.”
Henry Ward Beecher submitted, “The unthankful discovers no mercy, but the thankful heart will find in every hour, some heavenly blessings.” The more you thank, the more you will obtain. Gratitude gives you a sense of progress.
Gratitude allows us to think, thank and count our blessings. When you sit down and count those things you should be grateful for, you will always realise profit. If we get everything we want, we will soon want nothing to get. Stop complaining about what you do not have, be grateful for what you have. Focus on your blessing and feel grateful for them. The more you do this, the more you have reasons to be grateful. Roman philosopher, orator, politician and lawyer Cicero remarked, “A thankful heart is not only the greatest virtue, but the parents of all virtues.” The higher the altitude of your gratitude, the better your spiritual health will be.
Just like we need nutritious food for a healthy body, relevant information for a sharp mind, our souls need gratitude to blossom. Studies have shown that grateful people are more successful and innovative. Gratitude fuels happiness, happiness fuels success and success builds our confidence.
Whatever your condition and position in life, you must have cause to be grateful. There must be cause for, and a source of, happiness in your life. Let us always remember the words of Maxim Gorky: “Happiness always looks small while you hold it in your hands, but let it go, and you learn at once how big and precious it is.”
Be grateful for those things that bring you happiness. If you are stressed, frustrated, or depressed right now, you can effectively use gratitude to change your condition. Every morning for seven days, write down ten things you are grateful for and express heartfelt gratitude for those things. You can start by being grateful for the gift of life, sound mind, good health or someone who truly care for you.
If the only prayer coming out of your mouth is “Thank you,” it will suffice. We should imbibe the attitude of George Herbert, who remarked, “Thou o Lord has given so much to me, give me one more thing, a grateful heart.”
A poem to ponder on
Thank God for the morning
It has a tale to tell
While other folks don’t wake up
We wake up pretty well
With good health, peace and happiness
We shouldn’t want to be ungrateful
For this stack of evidence
God is wonderful to us.
The above poem really shows that as long as we live, we have cause to be grateful to God. Gratitude is your key to your next level.
ACTION PLAN
I consciously count my blessings and feel heartfelt gratitude for them. I focus on the good things in my life. I find the good reasons to be thankful at all times.
AFFIRMATION
I am grateful for every moment of my life. I am blessed and highly favoured.
Sesan Kareem helps organizations and their workforce improve their productivity, performance, sales, communication and profitability. He is a result-oriented coach.
