How do we cultivate HOPE in a world that seems to be getting crazier and moving further away from God every day.  It’s not uncommon to hear someone say, that situation is hopeless, that person is hopeless…how sad is that?  I truly believe that if you allow God into your life and heart, that nobody is hopeless, and no situation is out of His control.  He can redeem, restore, and renew any mind, if it is surrendered to Him and His will is paramount in that mind.

So, how do we cultivate HOPE in a culture that sees so much hopelessness?  We cultivate hope with the practice of gratitude.  This isn’t something we just pull out in November to get ready for Thanksgiving, it is a resilience tool that can and should be utilized all year long to cultivate hope.  Without HOPE, what is life?  Hopeless…you got it.

So, what is gratitude? Why is it important? What does it mean to practice it? And how does one become a grateful person?

Basically defined, gratitude is the feeling of thankfulness toward a gift or act of kindness and love. But this virtue is much more complex than this simple definition.

 Gratitude is about acknowledgment and recognition.

First, acknowledge the goodness in our life and the source of this gift.  We can acknowledge what we are grateful for in our lives by taking a moment each day to think about it and acknowledge it in the moment.

Then recognize the source of this gift. 

At the root of gratitude is undeserved merit, something we do not need to earn, it is a gift we are given by God.  You cannot do it alone and you need help from others, and of course God.  

According to research, gratitude is two-sided. First, one acknowledges goodness in one’s life, then recognizes the source of this gift. When you practice gratitude, you look for the good in the world is good and take time to see how you have benefitted in some way from that goodness. 

Acknowledge: You are unable to practice gratitude if you are unaware of the positive things in your life. Often this requires looking consciously at events or experiences differently, perhaps seeing the rainbow on a stormy day and remembering God’s promise of the rainbow or the beauty in a thunderstorm. 

Recognize: And when you feel thankful, you not only acknowledge the goodness but also recognize it came from another. This gift comes from a source outside of ourselves, God. 

Each post this month will focus on how to cultivate HOPE with gratitude!  If you’d like to join my July 2023 Challenge on Cultivating HOPE, go to my events and sign up today! We start July 10th, 2023.