You have a choice every day in this life: Live absorbed in worry, stress, and fear; be on the fast track of busy; focus only on what surrounds you; tune into the roar of this world. Or you can look up and ask God to help you take your eyes off your problems and the voices of others. You can look up to the One who holds it all together, and who holds you in the palm of His hands. God desires your whole heart. He waits for you to return. He longs for you to know the power of His presence over your life. He desires to bless you more than you can imagine.

I believe the one thing that will change your perspective is an attitude of gratefulness. A definition of gratefulness is “warm and deep appreciation for kindness received.” Colossians 2:6-7 (NASB1995) says, “Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.”And 1 Thessalonians 5:18 (ESV) says, “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

What are others saying about gratefulness? Ralph Waldo Emerson says, “Cultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to you, and to give thanks continuously, and because all things have contributed to your advancement, you should include all things in your gratitude.” And it was Maya Angelou who said, “Let gratitude be the pillow upon which you kneel to say your nightly prayer. And let faith be the bridge you build to overcome evil and welcome good.”