Lessons in Gratitude

Yesterday all went well. It was an early start… Lowestoft to London… Covid passes and certificates accepted… Eurostar to Paris… trains were all on time… the hotel was good…

Rachel would have been at the church parent and toddler group. Pictures showed it had gone well. We appreciated meeting, spending time, with brother Bryan and niece Catherine.

Throughout the day we received messages from many kind friends. Each day I write down 5 things I’ve been grateful for. Yesterday it wasn’t difficult to find 5 things…

Reading Elizabeth Elliot’s autobiography… In 1956 her husband had been killed by Waodani tribesmen in Ecuador, leaving her with a young daughter. She’d only been married for a couple of years; she desperately missed her husband.

In her journal she wrote: ‘When will it all end?’ And the answer? I believe I shall see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. (Psalm 27:13-14) She was still grateful to her God.

Christian writer, Claire Musters, writes of a time when life was difficult: ‘I found that taking the time to intentionally thank God for what he was doing in my everyday life shifted my focus off of the ‘what ifs’, and made me more grateful, and peaceful…

Science has discovered the wisdom behind (gratitude) in recent years… if you write down at least three daily gratitudes for 21 days it rewires the brain and improves your overall mental wellbeing.

Church reformer Martin Luther, wrote about a Robin: ‘I put his crumbs up on my windowsill… He… takes as much as his desires to satisfy his need. From thence he always hops to a little tree close by and lifts up his voice to God and sings his carols of praise and gratitude, tucks his little head under his wing and goes fast asleep, and leaves tomorrow to look after itself.

He is the best preacher that I have on Earth’. Elizabeth, Claire, Martin’s robin, my yesterday…. continuing lessons in gratitude.