John Kralik was in a bad place. The LA attorney was generally miserable…divorced again, broke, and living in a dingy apartment with no air conditioning. He was also struggling to pay his employees because clients wouldn’t pay him. Not exactly glamorous, but then John did an amazing thing. He decided he would concentrate on things to be grateful for, and follow that up with writing a thank you note every day for an entire year.

Over time, and not too slowly actually, John’s life began to improve. Life looked good again. One of the greatest outcomes has been the influence he’s had on others. His book, “A Simple Act of Gratitude: How Learning To Say Thank You Changed My Life” sold like crazy. He said that the year-long thank you notes helped him prioritize good things, and helped him focus on that.

John also has noticed a really interesting thing. A person’s natural tendency is to focus on nine things that go wrong. Yet what would happen if we focused instead on even a single good thing? He understands that we all can help each other. Rising tide lifts all boats, as they say. Just as we can help others form the discipline of gratitude, they can be our accountability in a very real way.

Every day we can text, email, call, or otherwise communicate to friends and family things that we’re grateful for. In turn, we can receive their good reports. 

Colossians 3:15 says, “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts to which indeed you were called in one body and be thankful.”

Whether it’s a community of believers or simply the wider culture, we can help each other every single day by passing along what we’re grateful for. There’s power in telling another what they mean to you, or passing along thanks for something as simple as a shared meal. Such a choice doesn’t cost anything, but it piles up spiritual treasure for us. Pretty soon you’ll be grateful just for being grateful.

Let’s pray. 

Father God, your blessings to us are endless. From the perfect distance from the sun for proper warmth and light to the love that you placed in our hearts for family and friends, you’re a good God, and you’re deserving of our praise. We look forward to a glorious future with you. In Jesus’ name, amen.

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