Gratitude is an interesting concept.
Gratitude is one of those things where you tend to make a list in your mind of things you’re grateful for when you think about it. You focus on family, friends, things you’ve done. Just about everything we are grateful for is about a relationship. And when someone else is down, we tend to remind them of people that appreciate them, and this is powerful, because love flows on the wings of gratitude. And love is transformational.
Deep Gratitude
The essence of gratitude is a very deep concept, and it may not be as simple as you perceive it…as with all esoteric teachings.
True gratitude has to go beyond external sources. It has to go beyond relationships with anything in the physical world.
Defining your well being by anything in the physical world, including family and friends, is one of the greatest ways you limit yourself in life. Just think about it, anytime you define your wellbeing on anything outside of you, your friends, your possessions, even your work, if you lose that thing, you feel diminished. Instead of you being in control and empowered in your life, you have given your power away. So while you have this thing, you are grateful, and in losing it, you are diminished.
Where Does Gratitude Come From
The source of gratitude must be something greater, that all of these external expressions are a reflection of. These internal sources of gratitude are the true source of your well being. For example, when I wrestled with this question and I started to negate external sources as defining my well being, it became more and more difficult to find something to be grateful for, because we are so programmed by our senses and experiences and the world at large. I eventually moved to a place of deep meditation. And a line from the “Pattern on the Trestleboard” (I believe by Paul Foster Case), echoed in my consciousness.
“I recognize the manifestation of the undeviating justice in all the circumstances of my life.”
I was reminded again that everything in my life was the result of all of my actions, thoughts and beliefs. That I had in essence, by default or by will, brought myself to this point in my life, whatever point, for good or for bad. And the more I recognize this truth, and accept the actions that have not supported me and the life I want to create, the more I can engage my will. By this awareness, I can make better choices, take more supportive actions. This is an incredibly freeing and powerful place, because it means, I have full control over my life and my future. And this is something for which I can be truly grateful. I can choose to accept the guidance and support from God and my Guides, and act upon that guidance to create a better place.
I encourage you to accept the blessings of Light that are ever present. Take an honest introspection of your present circumstances, and actions you have taken that have hurt you and that have supported you. And accept the strength, courage, and inexhaustible Love of God. It is by your will, you transform your life.
Namaste