The Attitude of Gratitude; I think in recent years, The Secret has given this phrase a new light and audience. Can you, however, appreciate the importance of this?

Gratitude is at the foundation of all that we have. Not just material objects, but spiritual and emotional things as well. The remarkable thing about gratitude is that it is a choice. We have the ability to be grateful for something or not. Gratitude, like love, is an emotion that serves to open us. Not to be grateful, like anger, hate or worry is constrictive or closing. I’m not raising ungratefulness to the level of hate; it just functions the same way in our lives.

Obviously, when we are open, as in love, we are in a position to attract and accept more, and we do. If we are ungrateful, or even take things too much for granted, then we are confined or closed, and we tend to repel things away from us. So, why is the choice to gratitude so difficult? I think primarily it’s because we have been taught from a very early age to look for the mistakes or the bad things in life. The simple act of looking in the mirror is to fix what may be wrong with the way you look. Few people go to the mirror to say “mmmm you look good, and I love you!” Your boss reviews you on your negative qualities; the things you need to fix. We judge people before we really know them. We’ve even built our computers with spell check (thank God) to automatically find and fix our errors. We’ve been trained to see the bad, or the wrong.

Gratitude is taking that training and expanding it to see the good and the right. Open yourself up to doing this and you’ll love the results in your life. This week why not make a list of those things you are grateful for. Then when ever you find that your mind is wandering, while you’re waiting in line at the bank, or stuck in commute traffic… reflect back on your Gratitude list than think of it as a short prayer; “dear God, I’m so grateful for ….”

Open your heart with gratitude, and get ready for it to be filled the best way possible!

Love and Bright blessings ~ Richard