Good morning friends!
This morning I read an old favorite of mine, Peace and Plenty, by Sarah Ban Breathnach, and she talked of the benefits of coming to the end of the day and writing down at least 5 things you were thankful for that day. A Gratitude List, as it’s known. The benefits are better than healthcare.
Just taking time to acknowledge your daily blessings from God can improve the way you live, exercise, are in good health, find contentment, have less stress, are more alert and enthusiastic.
For instance yesterday...a normal trip to Walmart turned into a blessing when a lady recognized me from my time at the library. She actually took time to stop and ask why I was no longer there and that turned into a few minutes of talking about being at home, crafts we're into and becoming friends on Facebook. What a blessing! Who doesn't want to make a new friend on a random Monday while returning something at Walmart?😀
Later that afternoon I received a few pictures of Asa and Sunday from Morgan. She's so good about sending us pictures and videos of the boys. We texted back and forth and that turned into a phone call as I was standing in the kitchen cooking. What a blessing to have a great relationship with my daughter-in-love that she wants to talk and dream about the future with me. That does a heart good 💛
Today I have a sewing date with Ella (she's 9) and I'm looking forward to all the sweet conversations we always have and teaching her a skill she can take into her future life.
These are the little blessings that I never want to take for granted. The blessings of ordinary days.
It's said that the more you exercise the muscle of looking for blessings, the more you will notice. Maybe this is one exercise routine I can actually follow through with 😀
It’s easy to give thanks for the big things that happen in life. But it’s the little things that happen in an ordinary day that add up to a grateful life.
Have a beautiful day, my friends!
Until Next Time...
Blessings!
I love this post; you know I feel the same about being grateful for the small (and big) things everyday. It also shifts my perspective, and takes my eyes from me to the world around me. I love doing this and have multiple gratitude lists all over the place: at work, at home, in my Bible, in my journal. It really is the blessing of ordinary days that means the world to me. Thanks for sharing today, friend!
ReplyDeleteThis is really a great idea and something I would love to be intentional about implementing in my own life. Often times, at least for me and my family, the days can feel so hard and frustrating but even in the midst of all of that there really are little things to be grateful for. Thank you so much for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI love this! It's so true that those little blessings are really what make up life and it's so important to take note of them, and thank God for them.
ReplyDeleteI wholeheartedly agree on thinking on your daily blessings.
ReplyDeleteI really need to purposefully noticing and acknowledging my blessings each day. Especially the every day blessings (which are so often taken for granted). I've tried different way to be more intentional about this...but they don't seem to stick. I seem to have this trouble with "all things exercise"! Today is a good day to get back on track (and the treadmill)!
ReplyDeleteI told my daughter the other day life is made up of the little things. What a great reminder to remain thankful and look for the blessings in the little things.
ReplyDeleteYour new home and staying at home sounds heavenly!
ReplyDeleteThis whole post just warms my heart. I agree that those simple daily blessings of time with loved ones, or even unexpected sweet moments, that bring so much joy and fullness to life. And the gratitude for it all is the icing on the cake. Blessings xo
ReplyDeleteI love this! I did this a few years back but I never thought about writing them at night. What a peaceful way to slow down and prepare for sleep. I am going to put a journal by my bed and do this starting tonight. I think too, that by focusing on this we may notice more good in our day rather than just go through our normal, sometimes mundane chores. So many daily blessings and I don't want to miss them.
ReplyDeleteSweet post. And you are right. The more we get into the habit of focusing on the small blessings throughout our day, the more we will notice.
ReplyDeleteI also keep a list of things I am grateful for each day.
We did our grocery shopping today. I like to thank the Lord for our groceries, the money to pay for them, the gas in our car to go shop for them, and the health to do our own shopping.
ReplyDeleteMany many years ago I lived in a studio apartment by myself. I had no car and no telephone. I had to ride the city bus to get to my secretarial job downtown and to get to the grocery store.I needed to not buy too much at a time since I had to carry the food home by myself. As a result, I often would stop at the grocery store on my way home from work, make the necessary purchases, and then have to pay bus fare again to finish getting home.
Blessedly, that situation only lasted about 5 months. The entire experience taught me some valuable life lessons in a number of areas, one of which was to be thankful for what we often take for granted.
It is the small things such as these that you wrote about, that make you stop and think about the goodness of life. Stop and Smell the roses so to speak. Enjoy your sewing day with Ella...this is something she will never forget.
ReplyDeleteThe blessings of ordinary days, what a beautiful thought. It's so nice that you were recognized in Walmart of all places, and now have a new friend to enjoy. When I was Ella's age I was at my Mother's side, watching her sew. I learned so much from her as I'm sure Ella will learn from you. Precious memories.
ReplyDeleteEveryday blessings are wonderful and something to be thankful for. You can't help but be happy when you are thankful.
ReplyDeleteAlmost every time we go to Walmart we run into someone from our church!!! Not many stores around here so we all end up there! :)