I just listened to this talk http://on.ted.com/gratefulness by a Benedictian Monk David Steindl-Rast. He made some comments that I thought were strong enough, simple enough and powerful enough to repeat.
The key to happiness is gratefulness. Every moment has something to be grateful about.
Every. Moment.
The problem is we don't recognize those moments. We speed past them and miss the opportunity to be grateful for them.
He recommends we Stop. Look. Go.
Stop and recognize that there's a moment happening. Look around and see what the moment is. Go and be grateful for that moment and if it calls for action - take it.
The result of living in gratefulness, he says and to which I wholeheartedly agree, is world peace. When people live in gratitude they live in a state of "enough". I have enough and therefore I can be generous. When we live with a paradigm of abundance, fear has no place in our lives. When there is no fear, what comes rushing in is respect, kindness, thoughtfulness, love, peace, joy….all the fruits of the Spirit.
I see this everyday living here in Prescott (I think it's everywhere). There is so much fear - fear for children and their being abducted, fear of someone breaking in your house, fear of getting run over as you walk across the street (I've experienced this fear and it unfortunately happens too often here) etc, etc, etc. There is fear everywhere.
I think we give way to much energy/power to fear.
I think we/I need to give ALL the energy we/I can muster to Gratitude.
Gratitude will change my life.
"Rejoice always, pray continually and give thanks in all circumstances" 1 Thessalonians 5:18
Amen.
The key to happiness is gratefulness. Every moment has something to be grateful about.
Every. Moment.
The problem is we don't recognize those moments. We speed past them and miss the opportunity to be grateful for them.
He recommends we Stop. Look. Go.
Stop and recognize that there's a moment happening. Look around and see what the moment is. Go and be grateful for that moment and if it calls for action - take it.
The result of living in gratefulness, he says and to which I wholeheartedly agree, is world peace. When people live in gratitude they live in a state of "enough". I have enough and therefore I can be generous. When we live with a paradigm of abundance, fear has no place in our lives. When there is no fear, what comes rushing in is respect, kindness, thoughtfulness, love, peace, joy….all the fruits of the Spirit.
I see this everyday living here in Prescott (I think it's everywhere). There is so much fear - fear for children and their being abducted, fear of someone breaking in your house, fear of getting run over as you walk across the street (I've experienced this fear and it unfortunately happens too often here) etc, etc, etc. There is fear everywhere.
I think we give way to much energy/power to fear.
I think we/I need to give ALL the energy we/I can muster to Gratitude.
Gratitude will change my life.
"Rejoice always, pray continually and give thanks in all circumstances" 1 Thessalonians 5:18
Amen.
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