Did you know that gratitude can actually make you happier? Gratitude releases two hormones in the brain that are responsible for our mood. When we practice gratitude, serotonin and dopamine are released into the brain, giving us a mood boost; it’s like a natural antidepressant. Today, I want to give you some ideas of how to cultivate gratitude in your life.

As we move into the month of November, it’s easy to think about being thankful because Thanksgiving is so close, but I want to talk about the benefits of gratitude not just for the month of November, but how to cultivate gratitude in our lives that will spill out into the next month and even into the next year.

The Goodness of God

The other day I was reading in Psalm 27:13-14 and landed on verse 13. It stuck with me because, I don’t know about you, but I find myself, especially in difficult times, looking at the glass as half empty instead of half full. As I meditated on this verse about the goodness of God, it reminded me that I need to be more aware of the goodness of God throughout my day.

I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord! - Psalm 27:13-14

You might feel like you woke up today and things are just not going well. You have a feeling it’s going to be one of those days; like it’s going to be a doozy of a day. These are the moments where gratitude would serve us well. It’s so hard though, to find things to be grateful for in times like this; we have to search for it, we have to work for it a little bit, but it is in these hard moments when we need gratitude the most.

The Glad Game

I don’t know if you’ve ever seen the movie, Pollyanna, but I think her life displayed in this movie illustrates how powerful gratitude can be not just in our individual lives but how it can impact those around us as well.

Pollyanna was a young orphan girl. Her parents died when she was young. She lived with her aunt who was not very kind. Before her dad died, they would play a game he called the Glad Game. So, whenever something happened that was maybe disappointing or difficult or sad, he would play this game with her. He would make it a game to search for something to be grateful for. It could be anything.

Often it starts with the tiniest little thing, like you have breath this moment. You woke up this morning. You’re breathing. It usually started by looking for something very simple, but in doing this, it began a habit for Pollyanna that continued on into her life. She went around town sharing the Glad Game with others and it changed her community.

Then, she had an accident that crippled her and she was bedridden for a while. She found it difficult in that moment to find those things to be grateful for, to locate the silver lining, but she continued to play the Glad Game even impacting people from her bedridden state.

I think this is part of the struggle, it’s when we’re in those difficult moments that we need to look for it the most. We actually need gratitude more than ever because it releases those hormones into our body. It changes our perspective and alters our mood.

Just the other day, my daughter had some car trouble. She had a long and stressful day at work, then, she goes to her car and it doesn’t start. So, I came up to where she worked and we had to go through all the things to get it to start, but with no luck. We ended up having to call a tow truck, which required us to wait even longer. It was hard and frustrating.

In moments like this, it is easy to just go down the spiral of negativity and see the glass as half empty instead of half full. I just happened to look up out the window at the sky. It was just clear blue, like the bluest sky I’ve ever seen with the fall leaves in the background and I said, “Well, at least it’s not raining!” and that was my way of seeing the silver lining.

When you take the time to look for something to be grateful for, it really can turn things around and focusing on cultivating gratitude creates a habit where you end up naturally bending that way without even realizing it.

I want to encourage you this month to begin to cultivate gratitude. Gratitude is really an attitude. It’s more than just being thankful, it’s an attitude (you can even hear the word ‘attitude’ in gratitude). It’s about having a heart of gratitude.

Going back to Psalm 27:13.

I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

We can lose heart so easily if we do not look for the goodness of God here, now. Think about what it would look if you lived your life believing and expecting to see the goodness of God today. What if you woke up with an expectation of experiencing the goodness of God in the land of the living, in the now?

I think a lot of times we go through life unaware. We don’t expect the goodness of God. We don’t search for it, instead we see the glass as half empty. I encourage you to use this month as a spring board to cultivate an attitude of gratitude. Start some new habits. Begin your day by jotting down three things you’re grateful for. It could be you’re simply thankful that you woke up this morning, that you’re breathing. Write them down before your feet hit the floor. Ask God to open your eyes to his goodness today.

Continue to practice gratitude throughout your day. When you look in the mirror at yourself, express gratitude about what you see in the reflection. When you face difficult things throughout your day, look for the goodness of God in the land of the living; believe that you will see the goodness of God in the here and now because if we don’t, if we don’t cultivate a heart of gratitude, we will lose heart, we will see the glass as half empty.

Can you imagine what your life would look like if you lived with the expectation that you would see the goodness of God in the land of the living? Imagine what it might do to those around you.

I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for and confidently expect the LORD; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for and confidently expect the LORD. - Psalm 27:13-14

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