For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal live. John 3:16 (NIV)

It's the day after Thanksgiving, and I'm thinking, just because the feast is over the message doesn't have to get lost as well. In fact, it's more important than ever to hold on to it as the craziness of everyday life swallows us up once again.

Each Thanksgiving weekend, I take time out to feel and express gratitude for all of the blessings I have received over the year as well as those I am receiving right now. There are the big or obvious ones, such as my wonderful friends and family, my health, my condo where I really enjoy living. And then there are the seemingly smaller ones, for example the soothing warmth of a freshly brewed cup of coffee with just the right amount of cream -- and the fact that I have access to all that, which means the little things aren't so little really, just less obvious.

Of course we know all about the power of gratitude and the mood-lifting (and vibration-increasing) power of making gratitude lists, keeping a gratitude journal, or simply feeling and/or expressing gratitude in any way that's appropriate.

But do we remember to live it? If you're anything like me, you too may get side-tracked by all the to-do lists, the fires that need putting out. So many things seem to call not so much for gratitude but for "Why me?"

Every Thanksgiving is a precious reminder that even if life doesn't seem to call for it, even if things don't go the way I like, gratitude is as important as ever. Ironically, gratitude especially in the face of adversity, hard as that may be, seems to be the key to turning things around.

So I made a big point of resuming the practice. I was going to start another special journal, and every day, first thing in the morning, or right before I go to bed at night, I would write down a few things I'm grateful for.

They could be obvious: A check in the mail. A meeting that went well. A class that was a big success. A new friend. More people signed up for my mailing list.

Or they could be more subtle: The fact that I woke up that morning feeling good, healthy, and alive. My cushy bed with my fluffy comforter. That I can see, hear, feel, walk, talk, read. That my ibook works GREAT and has hardly ever given me any trouble.

That when my printer irreparably jammed up a few days ago I was able to find a new one, for a VERY reasonable price, that is so much better and faster (and so much cheaper to run) that I wondered why I hadn't gotten a new one long before.

And of course, that I was able to install it easily and quickly without any stress and headaches.

You get the idea. Sometimes even things that don't seem cause for gratitude actually are! Sometimes more so than we have any idea at the time.

And you know what? This morning, as I was looking around for a nice blank journal to use as my new gratitude journal, I found one I had misplaced and all but forgotten about: a still almost completely blank Mary Engelbreit journal with a castle in the clouds on the front, along with the inscription: "Count Your Blessings." And that's just what I'm going to do.

Keeping a gratitude journal is just one of the many tools Elisabeth has assembled in her new ebook on making yourself feel better in a hurry. Check it out at http://www.feelbetterquickly.com In her blog, http://www.myfavoriteselfhelpstuff.com and the newsletter that comes with it, she offers even more resources for body, mind, spirit, and prosperity. To get a head start towards feeling better, also check out the video at her Squidoo lens at http://www.squidoo.com/secret2happiness

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

Web Thanksgiving on the Net

Not Just On Thanksgiving - Counting Our Blessings In Gratitude... by Elisabeth Kuhn