Why count your blessings?
How often do we focus on the chaos and things we perceive as negative in our lives?
Way too much…instead..why not count your blessings?
It’s very simple to turn that all around and start to realize how blessed we already are. Notice I said “simple” and not necessarily “easy”. Fighting against what is happening will just create more of what you don’t want. But if you, like so many of us, have always tried to fight against what you don’t want, it’s going to take a little time to get used to this new way of thinking and being that I’m about to share with you. It takes 21 days to create a new habit, so let’s start today.
Start by counting your blessings…
There is a delightful old children’s hymn by the same title..Count Your Blessings..the first verse goes like this..
When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
Words: Johnson Oatman, Jr., in Songs for Young People, by Edwin Excell (Chicago, Illinois: 1897)
Whether you are a person of faith, or not, the notion that you should be grateful in times of crisis may be a difficult one to take on board. It is about focusing on the good and showing appreciation for all that is positive in our lives. More about positive thinking can be found in my post, positive thinking, positive results.
How to count your blessings
Choose a number and set a goal to come up with that many blessings by the end of your day, every day. I recommend 5 blessings a day, at least. Hold yourself accountable to this and list that many blessings each day. Even the little ones, especially the little ones. The magic here is that soon you will find yourself noticing even more blessings, so be sure to list those as well.
Think of it this way; if you kept giving gifts to someone and they didn’t say Thank You, how many more gifts would you give them? Probably not too many more. Counting your blessings is like saying Thank You to the Universe. The simple awareness and acknowledgement of the good in your life causes you to look for more and as I always say “we find whatever it is we are looking for”.
Professor of Psychology, Robert Emmons of UC Davis says
“Gratitude is one of the few things that can measurably heal, energize and change people’s lives. It is a turning of the mind, not what I don’t have, but what I have already.”
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-marcia-hootman/gratitude-practice_b_4170267.html
If you begin to look at the simple things, that maybe you once took for granted, as an actual blessing in your life every day (IE: your health, how productive you are that day, the sun rising, your warm bed, etc) you will in turn open your eyes to how good life is. This raises your vibration, and then opens you up to receive even more blessings.
It’s all about shifting your focus…
Have you ever heard the saying “a watched pot never boils?” If you watch the pot, it’s going to look much like it did when you first put it on to begin to boil. But if you focus on all of the other little things you need to do, for example, to prepare a dinner, the pot will look different once you return to it.
The same is true for LIFE!
Focus on the good and count your blessings
You are less likely to figure out all of the answers to your “problems” if you focus on them with frustration, anger, annoyance, etc. Take a break and give attention to what you LOVE about your life, even if just for a moment. There is always good, it’s just that sometimes we must look a little harder to find it. Life, in itself, is a blessing, If you focus on the good more often, you will not only receive more of it, but you will feel better and look at everything with new eyes. Then when you do need to confront what you perceive as bad or chaotic conditions or circumstances it’s from a completely different perspective.
“When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.” Wayne Dyer.
You will come to realize, the more you do this, the more that you count your blessings, that things unfold as they should, all the time and the solutions to these, let’s rename them “obstacles”, will appear to you.
I challenge you to do this every single day, in any area of your life. It is a practice, that we must remind ourselves of very often. You will see that as the days go by and you notice and receive more and more blessings, the more natural this will come to you. It will become second nature, and seeing and being aware of your blessings will become who you are. It already is who you are, maybe you’ve just forgotten that for awhile.
When you count your blessings they multiply!
Breathe in and relax for a moment. Everything is a blessing, even in disguise. Everything is fine, perfect even, and as it should be. The only reason we ever say “it will all be okay in the end” is because our minds need time to catch up with the fact that it already is fine! Notice and count your blessings and you will be surprised by how many you find.
Today, and everyday, is a blessing in itself and life is full of blessings in between. The happy times, the chaos and, most importantly, you, are a blessing!
Watch this short video for more positive ways to count your blessings.
Get your free 5 min guided meditation/visualization to create Peace & Clarity, mp3 immediate download now. – See more at: http://loranegordon.com/yourhappinessway/welcome-to-my-page
I loved this post! While it’s sometimes difficult to feel grateful, it certainly is helpful and healing. I’ve found that when we make an intentional effort to count our blessings, somehow, we receive blessings in return. Have a great day! http://www.thehappybalancegirl.com/7-tips-live-with-passion/
Thank you Michele for your appreciation and kind words. Lorane
Yes, Lorane, when I look at the good, more good things happen to me. Great advice, as usual. Great start to my week. Loved the video…also loved the blog. 🙂 Peace and love, Michele
Your story was really informative, thanks!
Thanks for your comment Jayden.
Lorane