Gratitude: The Game ChangerSample

Build the Habit Gratitude is not just a set-it-and-forget-it concept. Nope, it takes practice. Maybe you played sports or learned an instrument when you were younger. But unfortunately, you didn’t know how to do it well initially, so you had to practice scales or do basketball drills. Gratitude is the same. It’s a muscle we need to develop, and if it has atrophied from years of disuse (i.e., negative thinking), it may take work. The habit of gratitude is best practiced daily. Just a few minutes every day can make a difference! Here are some ways to build the habit: -Add gratitude to your prayer time, giving thanks to the Lord. -Journal prayers of gratitude. -Practice gratitude on your commute to work. -Before you go to bed at night, thank God for what went right during your day. -Get an accountability partner and text your gratitude lists to one another every day. Wrangling Negative Thoughts In 1 Thessalonians 5:18, it says to give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. A few minor tweaks can help us with this habit. Your default thinking may still be negative—remember, gratitude takes time and practice. But God has a plan for that. He tells us in Philippians 4:8 to think about true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and admirable things. We can’t just say we won’t think negative things. We have to replace negative thoughts with positive ones. Scripture is a great way to combat negative thoughts. When you practice gratitude, you start noticing when you go down a negative rabbit trail. If that happens, stop yourself, reject those thoughts, and meditate on God’s word. It takes daily practice to build this new habit. Finding the best in people, situations, and events might initially feel foreign. But with God’s help, it will get easier! Action step: Keep encouraging scripture on sticky notes or your phone's lock screen so you will see it often. When you think negatively, read and meditate on the scripture you prepared beforehand. Prayer: God, show me where my thoughts are going wrong. I want to think about things that are going right, not those going wrong. Bring it to my attention when I have slipped into negative thinking, and remind me how blessed I am to have you as my Father. In Jesus’ name, amen.