How do we cultivate thankfulness, gratitude, and appreciation?
- Cultivate Dreams
- Enjoy Simple Pleasures
- Sow into Your Soul
- Nurture Your Spirit
Cultivate Dreams
We want to cultivate our dreams, but we don’t need our aspirations to breed discontentment, strife, or paralyzation. We want our heartfelt desires to inspire and motivate us forward.
We need to allow ourselves time to incubate dreams in our heart. We can journal, take a walk, spend a morning alone at home, or plan a getaway weekend to brainstorm and “flesh out” our dream on paper. Thankfulness in the midst of the journey will keep us inspired until our desire is fulfilled.
It is a safe thing to trust Him to fulfill the desire which He creates. ~Amy Carmichael
How do our dreams inspire us yet not hinder us? Some dreams will come to fruition and fulfill the desires of our heart and mind. With a positive perspective, we can allow these dreams to mold us into a giving person. We must refuse to let unfulfilled or broken dreams break us. Instead, we must allow our dreams to be fertilizer for the plans that will bear fruit.
Give me the Love that leads the way
The Faith that nothing can dismay
The Hope no disappointments tire
The Passion that’ll burn like fire
Let me not sink to be a clod
Make me Thy fuel, Flame of God.
~Amy Carmichael
Enjoy Simple Pleasures
It is the simple things in life that mean the most to us. Ask any cancer survivor and you will find they enjoy their early morning cup of coffee in their favorite chair surrounded by their loved ones. It is their loving family, familiar surroundings, and hope for the future that comforts them as they heal.
Perhaps the most tragic thing about mankind is that we are all dreaming about some magical garden over the horizon, instead of enjoying the roses that are right outside today. ~Andrew Carnegie
I enjoy sunrises, sunsets, watching the rain, seeing a rainbow, the fresh green leaves in spring, and the vibrant fall colors. I enjoy the fragrant aroma: of antique roses, fresh cut grass, and biscuits.
Our perspective will affect our ability to enjoy the simpler pleasures of life. Is the glass half-empty or half-full? The glass holds the same amount of water, but our viewpoint will affect how we process an event.
For instance, I can sit in my backyard, listen to the doves coo, feel the gentle breeze, capture the fragrance of flowers and thoroughly lose myself in the moment of contentment. All is well with my soul.
I can sit in the same chair, and zero into the sound of a neighbor’s dog barking, the sound of a car driving by on the street, criticize the wind for not blowing or for blowing to strong, complain about the lack of fragrance from the flowers and lose myself in discontentment. All is wrong in the world.
There is always something to be happy about if we look for it: ‘Two men looked through prison bars, the one saw mud, and the other saw stars.’ ~Amy Carmichael
Our perspective allows us to enjoy the beauty, appreciate the moment, and release the things which are unpleasant to us. Thankfulness and contentment help our soul to be satisfied.
Sow into Your Soul
What causes beauty to arise from your soul? Music, books, paintings or artwork are a few indoor stimulants that help us cultivate beauty. The view outside of our window, a walk in the park, a drive along the shoreline or through a forest are outdoor stimulants that help us find delight in our world.
We can sow into our soul by cultivating our spirit. Intentionally seeking wisdom from God releases us from the stress of walking alone or from carrying a weight that is too heavy for us to bear. When we tend to our spirit, soul and body, we become a well-rounded person.
Living from a whole heart means we are not shackled by the past, tethered by the present, or imprisoned by fear for the future. ~Lisa Blair
Improving our soul develops our ability to cultivate thankfulness, gratitude, and appreciation. To cultivate thankfulness, name one simple pleasure you enjoyed today.
Nurture Your Spirit
Our spirit is renewed in God’s Presence. His Holy Spirit fills us, then we know His amazing love, His incredible joy, His peace which passes all understanding, His lovingkindness, His gentle leading, His faithfulness to us and on our behalf.
We can seek God and find Him.
“But from there you will seek the Lord your God, you will find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and all your soul.” ~Deuteronomy 4:29 AMP
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.” ~Matthew 7:7-8 NASB
We can grow in thankfulness by cultivating our dreams, enjoying the simple pleasures of life, sowing good seeds into our soul, and by nurturing our spirit in God’s Presence. As we count our blessings from being in His Presence, and from gaining His perspective of our world, our spirit is renewed by His faithfulness to us.
Recommendations:
3 Outstanding Faith Reasons to Abide in Christ – Strength with Dignity
What is the Advantage to being a Fellow-Heir with Christ? – Strength with Dignity
5 Ways to Overcome Our Fears – Strength with Dignity
References:
Amplified Bible (AMP) Copyright © 2015 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631. All rights reserved.
Andrew Carnegie Quotes. Published by GoodReads. Retrieved November 12, 2021, from Andrew Carnegie Quotes (Author of The Autobiography of Andrew Carnegie) | Goodreads
Inspiring Amy Carmichael Quotes – for Mission-Minded Women. Published by Mission-minded families. Retrieved November 12, 2021, from Inspiring Amy Carmichael Quotes – for Mission-Minded Women (missionmindedfamilies.org)
New American Standard Bible 1995 (NASB1995), copyright 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.
This is a re-post of Count Your Blessings – Cultivate Thankfulness. Published November 26, 2021.
Bible Gateway Blogger Grid Member #bgbg2 #BibleGateway
18 thoughts on “How to Cultivate Thankfulness – Count Your Blessings”
Lisa, I love that whole concept of cultivating. So enriching and full of hope. I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with rest and celebration, friend. I’m grateful that we get to do this blogging life together …
We choose what we cultivate, Linda, I pray by the grace of God, we choose well! May the Lord give you and your family a grace-filled Thanksgiving, Linda, especially as you miss your sweet momma’s presence this year.
This is inspiring and we do need to be thankful for our blessings. Thanks so much for linking up at the Unlimited Link Party 91. Shared.
Gratitude and thankfulness are great attitudes to cultivate, Dee!
Lisa,
I have found thankfulness and gratitude is a choice. I had a restless night’s sleep due to things weighing on my mind. I had to force myself to take my beagle on a walk and as we walked in the sunshine, I thanked God for every blessing I could think of. It didn’t magically change my outlook, but it did help change my perspective. Counting our blessings is an act or worship. Great post!
Blessings,
Bev xx
So true, Bev! Thankfulness and gratitude are a choice, and God is so gracious to strengthen us by His Spirit as we count our blessings as an offering of worship to Him!
I love the word “cultivate” and I think it points to the fact that we’re always just skimming the surface. I see the need to dig deep in careful study and prayer.
So true, Michele, cultivation requires digging deeper in prayer and His Word.
Thank you, Lisa for the reminder of the importance of cultivating thankfulness, I know sowing into my soul breeds even more gratefulness.
Cultivating thankfulness makes all the difference in our perspective, doesn’t it, Donna?
It is vital for is to cultivate thankfulness. And I love all your thoughts here.
Thanks, Deborah!
Excellent points for cultivating a thankful heart. When I begin the day with thankfulness, it is a good day!
Thankfulness makes such a difference in our perspective, Carol!
I loved your use of the word “cultivate” – we do need to intentionally work on gratitude and giving thanks. “We can grow in thankfulness by cultivating our dreams, enjoying the simple pleasures of life, sowing good seeds into our soul, and by nurturing our spirit in God’s Presence.” Thankfulness makes a difference in our lives, our perspective, and in our circumstances. Wonderful post, Lisa.
Intentional gratitude and cultivating thankfulness in our hearts make a huge difference in our perspective, Joanne.
Love this message Lisa! I appreciate your words.
Thanks so much for sharing this with Sweet Tea & Friends this month dear friend.
I’m so glad you were encouraged, Paula! And thank you for hosting!