SUREFIRE WAYS TO DEVELOP A THANKFUL ATTITUDE

[Pravin Kumar]

Surefire Ways to Develop a Thankful Attitude by Chris Widener

Spend some time thinking  about how good you have it. We know this, but we don’t often spend time  pondering it. Doing so will shape and mold your attitude and develop healthy  thought patterns that will make you more thankful all of the time. As the old  hymn goes, “Count Your Blessings, Name Them One by One.” Take some time and  write down every single thing you have in your life to be thankful about. Do  this with your children if you have some, and you will all be astounded at all  the good things in your life.

Look down the  socioeconomic chain instead of up. Focusing our thoughts on the things we don’t  have, while being a motivator, can also be a source of envy and greed.  Focusing, at least on a semi-regular basis, on those who have less than us,  causes us to be thankful for what we have.

Go work at a food bank.  The more success we achieve, the more apt we are to live our lives around  others who are successful, while eliminating or drastically reducing our  contact with those who are less fortunate than ourselves. Working at a food  bank will open your eyes once again to a world you may have forgotten about.

Send a good-sized check on  a regular basis. To whatever charity you choose, of course. Richard Foster says  in his book Money, Sex, and Power,  that money desires to be loved, courted, desired and hoarded. Giving money away  breaks the power money can wield over us. Remember, money isn’t the root of  evil; the love of money is the roots of all kinds of evil. Giving a good chunk  away on a regular basis keeps things in perspective.

Simplify. Ralph Waldo  Emerson said that the true measure of a man’s wealth is in the things he can  afford not to buy. When we simplify, we realize how we can make do on so much  less. It makes us thankful for all the extras we have most of the time. Read  the classic Walden. If you really  want to get radical, fast for a day or two. You will really be thankful when  you get to eat again!

Remember, ultimately what  we have has been given to us. Yes, we work hard, but Someone allows us the  breath to breathe each moment. Billy Graham was asked what surprised him most  about life and he answered, “The brevity of it.” Life is short. We can’t take  it for granted. We should remember that life, and success, is a gift. That is  something to be thankful for.

[purusharth]

Respected Sir
Let me start this process for myself by being thankful for your posts. They make for some truly delightful reading.