THE ANTIDOTE FOR LACK

One of the greatest keys in my armory is gratitude. Through gratitude I can always go to a more expansive and deeper level within myself. It often requires that I be more open and have a greater ability to receive, but that is what I want anyway. When I go into gratitude, I am always rewarded.

When I look out into the world to find my reference points, before long I am projecting some kind of concern or worry about the future. When I look inside myself, check my own experience, and take a quick inventory of my blessings, life is good and I bask in gratitude.

The following is excerpted from an article on gratitude by bestselling authors Drs. Blair and Rita Justice:

Psychologists Robert Emmons at the University of California at Davis, and Michael McCullough, at the University of Miami, are foremost researchers in [the] field of gratitude. What they have learned so far is that gratitude is good for you, really good for you.

In an experimental comparison, people who kept gratitude journals on a a weekly basis exercise more regularly, reported fewer physical symptoms, felt better about their lives as a whole, and were more optimistic about the upcoming week compared to those who recorded hassles or neutral life events (Emmons & McCullough, 2003). It doesn't end there.

Participants who kept gratitude lists were more likely to have made progress toward important personal goals (academic, interpersonal and health-based). And there's more. Young adults who practice a daily gratitude intervention (self-guided exercises) had higher levels of alertness, enthusiasm, determination, attentiveness and energy compared to the group that focused on hassles or thinking of how they were better off than others. The researchers keep adding to the list of benefits that come from practicing gratitude.

GOD is your PARTNER
LIVING THE SPIRITUAL PRINCIPLES OF
ABUNDANCE & PROSPERITY