Embrace a Life of Thanks

A few weeks ago, after I released a video on social media about having vision for your life, I received a message asking: How do you maintain vision AND be content with what you have? Honestly: this is so tough! There is one key spiritual discipline that has helped me to do this.

Did you know that celebration is a spiritual discipline?

I intentionally make space to celebrate growth and wins in my own life; in my family and on the teams I lead. I do this to cultivate contentment, gratitude and joy, while maintaining vision for the future. A few years ago, I was in my car making the straight and narrow Saskatchewan drive to my hometown farm when ideas began to flood my mind about a Bible study for girls and women. I began praying, planning, experimenting and waiting – trusting God to turn ideas into reality as I walked closely with Him. I first taught the study four years ago and it was called STAND Satisfied … The study has been greatly altered and the idea has been grown by many more gifted brains coming together.

Tomorrow, the FLOURISH Bible study will be released at the Sisterhood YXE Summer Series. It has been created, directed, and produced by countless people, passionate to empower girls and women with a Kingdom mindset, gained by practicing gratitude and experiencing God’s generous heart in a variety of ways. Throughout the process of creating the study, there have been so many wins to celebrate, and if we did not stop to acknowledge and praise God for progress – the process would have been a miserable time of impatiently waiting for the end result. The wonder of life isn’t experienced at the end point; it’s in the creating of your masterpiece … your one exquisite life. Celebrate it all; the lovely and the ugly. Cherish each day like it could be your last … because it could be, and you don’t want to wake up and have missed your very own life.

Do you have a gratitude practice? Here are three principles that can help you make the most of your life as you embrace a life of thanks.

Three Principles to Practice Gratitude:

1. Get A Gratitude Journal – You can trace paths in your brain that will become stronger and stronger as you intentionally build a mindset that says: God’s goodness is truly lavished on me. Keep a daily list!

2. Be Specific – Research shows the more specific you are, the more your gratitude practice will affect how you feel.

3. Keep It Creative – Continue to give thanks for new things each day, and express your thanks in new ways. When your gratitude practice becomes mundane going through the motions, it looses power in your life.

“Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”
– Colossians 4:2

PS – If you are interested in joining the online launch of the FLOURISH Bible study beginning July 15th, please email me at kaitlyn@elimchurch.ca! I would love to have you join!