With Thanksgiving right around the corner, it's time for a check-up to see how our hearts are doing - and I don't mean cardio-vascular health. I'm talking about the condition of our gratitude heart.
The level of gratitude we practice on a regular basis has a direct and specific correlation to our level of contentment and happiness.
Take a look at the 3 levels of gratitude to determine your current condition, and decide what steps you can take to improve your "heart health."
Level One - Beginner
This gratitude level presumes that one has made a bold leap to be intentional about gratefulness on a regular basis. A gratitude beginner is someone who has decided to make a habit of carving out one small slice of each day to focus on and talk about gratefulness.
A suggested starting point for a beginner is to develop a family dinner-time tradition where everyone shares one thing from their day for which they are grateful.
Level Two - Intermediate
The intermediate level is even more focused on the intentional, planned, chosen act of being grateful. It goes beyond selecting one thing out of the day to share with family. This level requires a more in-depth commitment to making gratitude a way of life.
Many people at this level keep a gratitude journal, and find that the act of writing down the things for which they are grateful develops a heart which is more inclined towards gratefulness throughout the entire day.
A good place to start for this level is to make a habit of writing at least 5 items per day that you are grateful to have in your life: a person, a thing, a place, a circumstance, a skill, an experience, etc. By making this a daily habit, your heart will begin to respond more readily towards gratefulness.
Level Three - Advanced
"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." - Philippians 4:6
Your gratitude heart is in tip-top shape when you reach the advanced level. This level is demonstrated by an attitude of thankfulness even in the midst of trouble.
Not many people operate at this level on an ongoing basis from day to day. With God's help and strength, we are able to see beyond circumstances and realize that there can be some greater good, even in the midst of difficulty.
If you have had the privilege of knowing someone who has reached the advanced level of gratitude, you can attest to how inspiring, humbling, and encouraging it is to have them in your life.
The Level One and Two gratitude habits must be maintained and expanded upon in order to reach the Advanced Gratitude level.
Only when we are able and willing to look beyond our circumstances, humble ourselves, and maintain a posture of prayer in our heart, will we truly have a life overflowing with the gift of gratefulness.
May you begin to experience ever-increasing levels of gratitude in your life, starting today.
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