Count your blessings. Express gratitude to God. Watch your blessings grow like bamboo. The positive side-effect of blessings is your overwhelming desire to give good stuff to other people. God, loves, loves, loves gratitude. When you accept blessings with joyful gratitude, they will grow exponentially.
But, how do you begin to count your blessings?
“Experts” tell us to list five good things a day. Well…there’s that. But, suppose you count your blessings and one day you have seven, the next day you can only think of three. You’ll likely stress or feel guilty that you experienced more or less than five blessings.
When you thank God for all your Good, be mindful no blessing is too little or too big. Here are some suggested blessings. No doubt, you’ll think of others.
Little Blessings
Green lights and parking spots. Cold water on a hot day. Jeans that zip. Warm chocolate chip cookies. Afternoon naps.
Big Blessings
Your health. Roof doesn’t leak. Sunday mornings at God’s House. Authentic friends.
Whopper Blessings
God. Life’s Breath. Life’s work. Wisdom. Big Dreams manifest.
Here are ways to count your blessings. Use any that you resonate with and discard the rest.
Early Bird Blessings
Thank God for this day he made. Thank your delicious bed. Thank your must-have coffee. Thank your crunchy cereal for not going soggy.
You can keep up with early bird blessings by starting a handwritten list or store them on a document in your computer. On a day you feel cranky, count the blessings you already have.
Keep a Blessings/Gratitude Journal
Carry a small spiral notebook in your purse or pocket. Jot a note when something good happens, i.e. nice man let me check-out in front of him; colleague bought my lunch; boss gave me an ‘attaboy’.
Transfer daily blessings to your journal each evening. Add any comments or insights that come. Thank God for your daily blessings.
Lullaby Blessings
When you’ve got worries on your mind, sleep eludes you. You can divert your mind toward a calming, pleasant direction by counting your blessings. Let gratitude cover you like a soft blanket, as you thank God for each of your bountiful blessings.
The sun will signal a new day before you realize it. Because you will have experienced a deep, restorative sleep.
Try our lullaby blessings practice the next time you are tossing about and punching your pillow, in efforts to get sleeping.
TGIF Praise-Worthy Blessings
How many times have you said TGIF (thank God it’s Friday)?
Nothing wrong with that! Now, what about taking time on Friday night to write down and contemplate praise-worthy blessings, which happened during the week.
For some, a weekly accounting of blessings works better than making daily lists. It relieves the obligation that you must count your blessings every day. Would it surprise you to hear researchers have found that expressing gratitude weekly is uplifting for your body, mind and spirit?
And Then What Happens?
When you let God love you with his abundant blessings, something magical happens. You invoke the Spiritual Law of Giving and Receiving. Without meaning to or perhaps, not even knowing about the law. You may know the spiritual law as sowing and reaping or what goes around comes around.
Here’s how it works: Count your blessing. Express gratitude to God. Watch your blessings grow like bamboo. Give all you can, anytime you can to anyone you can. The more blessings you get, the more you will want to give good to others.
This is called the Circle of Life.
Final Thoughts:
Why nickel and dime life to death? When you count your blessings, you can have the whole enchilada. You can have God. God is the whole enchilada.