My Gratitude Journal

Randy’s August, 2010 Update

Something a little different this month – a spiritual practice I’ve found helpful…

with photos I recently took at the Morton Arboretum (something I’m grateful for).

My Gratitude Journal:

About a month ago, I resurrected my Gratitude (Thankfulness) Journal.

I resurrected it because I could sense a nagging feeling of discontent in my spirit, with more scarcity thinking than abundance mentality.

For some reason, it’s rather easy for me to slip into a mindset of scarcity, focusing on what’s lacking in me, in my life, and in the world.

I read the newspaper or watch news programs mostly spotlighting the bad things in the world and I feel subtly drawn into a less abundant outlook.  I hear some Christians spending more time and energy talking about who and what they’re against, rather than who and what they are for, and I start to feel less hopeful and more constricted by an atmosphere of scarcity and negativity.  Life in general seems to hold its share of conflicts, demands, and emotional drains.

If I don’t watch my healthy rhythms of life and make sure I keep getting filled up, I can slowly become depleted, exhausted and drawn away from the abundant life I believe Jesus wants to lead me toward.

My soul was longing for refreshment.  So every evening, I reviewed my day and I wrote down three things that I was grateful for.  After a few days, I could already feel a difference internally.  A shift was happening.  I was retraining my mind, watching for the good, and celebrating the abundance God has for me in this life.

I was being ushered into a place of more abundance where I connect with God and others in life-giving ways.

This spiritual practice has been helping me abide in him and remain in the present moment, practicing the Presence, noticing all that’s good in the here and now, and observing and celebrating who God is and what he is doing in me and around.  It seems to bring me more life, more love, and more truth.

Another way I’ve approached this type of practice in the past has been to each day write down my high and low points of the day (or as the twentysomethings might say, my “happys” and “crappys”!) – those moments that brought me abundance, life, peace, joy, love and other good things, and those moments that brought me scarcity, death, shame, sadness, or fear.  Over time some patterns often emerged as I looked back at what brought me life and what snuffed it out.  By doing this, I’ve found that I have been better able to choose life and move toward those things that brought me abundance.

Somehow these types of spiritual practices help me see more clearly God’s presence throughout my day and I’m drawn into more intimate connectedness with him.

If you choose to resurrect one of these spiritual practices for yourself, I’d love to hear back about your experience.  Perhaps we could all learn and grow from what you’ve experienced.

“…with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.
And the peace of God, which transcends understanding,
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Phil 4:6b-7).
I don’t think true peace comes without thanksgiving in some form.

“…whatever if true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.” (Phil 4:8)

Have fun being thankful!  I’m thankful for you!

In His Love,
Randy