Attitude of Gratitude

Today is #ThankfulThursday!!!!  Woot woot!! I know usually just jump into all the things I am thankful for!!!  But, lets change it up a  min.  I wanna share with you a little from the talk "Grateful in Any Circumstances" by: President Dieter F. Uchtdorf Second Counselor in the First Presidency April 2014:

"But some might say, “What do I have to be grateful for when my world is falling apart?”

Perhaps focusing on what we are grateful for is the wrong approach. It is difficult to develop a spirit of gratitude if our thankfulness is only proportional to the number of blessings we can count. True, it is important to frequently “count our blessings”—and anyone who has tried this knows there are many—but I don’t believe the Lord expects us to be less thankful in times of trial than in times of abundance and ease. In fact, most of the scriptural references do not speak of gratitude for things but rather suggest an overall spirit or attitude of gratitude.

It is easy to be grateful for things when life seems to be going our way. But what then of those times when what we wish for seems to be far out of reach?

Could I suggest that we see gratitude as a disposition, a way of life that stands independent of our current situation? In other words, I’m suggesting that instead of being thankful for things, we focus on being thankful in our circumstances—whatever they may be."

(continue reading this talk here)

I am Thankful for so much!! I really am!!!  You know, I really don't have a lot! Or people may look at me and wonder what I have to be thankful for.  I have a car, but that car has not ran in 2 years now.....lol.  So, I do a ton of walking!  But that's OK with me!!  It sucks, yes.....but, it is better for my health and I am actually saving money on insurance and gas!!  I don't have a HUGE house like I see all my classmates have.  You know, new everything!!  I am not envy, I am happy to see people succeeding!! Do I wish I had a nice, new, big house??  Well, of course!!  I am human!!  But I am thankful for my little, basic, four room house!!  It is a roof over my head!!  Do I get annoyed that I feel like I am cleaning up after a 2 year old 24/7......yes, but, I am thankful that my grandson is here.  Do I feel like I am ALAWAYS going through something???  And that I am stressed all the time!?  Yes!  But I am thankful for these hard times, because of them.....I have a closer relationship with my Heavenly Father!!!!

I am trying to approach things in life now with that attitude of gratitude, not just being thankful.  I wanna teach my kids and my grandson now to approach life like this as well!!  And this isn't just a "Mormon" thing y'all!!!

I was just reading an article from the Wall Street Journal online.  Its by Diana Kapp from December 2013.

HEALTH & WELLNESS

Raising Children With an Attitude of Gratitude

Research Finds Real Benefits for Kids Who Say 'Thank You'

Continue reading the full artilcle here

In this article they did some research on kids in middle and in high school......

"The mere act of giving thanks has tangible benefits, research suggests. A 2008 study of 221 kids published in the Journal of School Psychology analyzed sixth- and seventh-graders assigned to list five things they were grateful for every day for two weeks. It found they had a better outlook on school and greater life satisfaction three weeks later, compared with kids assigned to list five hassles.

Another study examined 1,035 high-school students outside New York City. The study, published in 2010 in the Journal of Happiness Studies, found that those who showed high levels of gratitude, for instance thankfulness for the beauty of nature and strong appreciation of other people, reported having stronger GPAs, less depression and envy and a more positive outlook than less grateful teens."

Also in this article it states how we can do things to help teach our kids to be grateful.  I remember as a girl growing up. my step mom would have dinner on the table at 5pm......everyday.  And everyday we would be at the table, but we would not touch the food until my dad was at the table.  After we were done with dinner, each one of us kids(5) would thank my mom for dinner before getting up.  We were grateful that my mom made sure we had dinner every night. never missing a beat.  I really think things have become so convenient that we forget to be thankful. Or, not forget, but maybe not recognize it as much??  I mean, to buy anything now days all you have to do is click a button on our computers or smartphone and within a few days its at our door!!  Right??

I guess my point in this blog is to challenge you to have an attitude of gratitude.  We should practice this every single day!! Not just "thanksgiving" or #ThankfulThursday....  Lets raise our kids to be less stressed. less depressed, Happy adults!!  

Before I wrap this up, I wanna say........

"I am thankful for this life here on Earth!  I am thankful for my earthly family! I am thankful That I have a Heavenly Father who loves me and supplies me with the strength I need  to make it through hard times and I am thankful for our Church Leaders who Give these talks and are here to help Counsel us! I am thankful that I am a daughter of a loving Heavenly Father!  I am thankful for all my readers and I am thankful that I have a place were I can write about anything and express how I feel!!!  I am also thankful for my parents who have taught me to be thankful for everything!!

I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ

Amen"

I hope y'all didn't mind me getting off of beauty for a min!!!  Now  I'm fixing to curl up on this rainy Sunday here in Ga!!  Have a great #sundayfunday and stay #blessed!

Muahs!!