How Often Do You Count Your Blessings?

So often in this life things happen that are beyond our control. It is times like these that you have to look at that proverbial ‘silver lining’ and take a moment to stop and count your blessings.

Your husband leaves you after cheating on you for ten years. Legal issues aside, you may cry because you are alone, but are you really? The blessing in this case is clear – you lost a cheating husband and gained your life back! It may not seem like it right away but it will one day.

Your girlfriend decided that she wants to “test the waters and keep her options open”. Do you cry and moan, or do you count the many possible blessings here? Do you really want to make her your priority in life, while you are merely an “option” to her?

The unthankful heart discovers no mercies; but the thankful heart will find, in every hour, some heavenly blessings ~ Henry Ward Beecher

You got into a car accident through no fault of your own and now your car is totaled. So many potential blessings here, provided you have some kind of insurance. The silver linings in this instance may include getting your loan paid off or money from a settlement to buy a new car. Sure, you broke a leg, but you got time off work to heal and you reconnected with an old friend, romance blossomed and now you are engaged to be married. None of which would have happened without the original car accident.

I try to joke about this count your blessings concept, because sometimes being too serious about spiritual things is counterproductive to getting the message across. For example, when I present Tarot reading classes I call them Tarot “playshops”, not workshops.

But I digress. A healthy attitude is key to us living a healthy life. Our attitude colors everything that we do, from how we think to how we act and react. By counting the blessings in any given situation we demonstrate a vibration very close to gratitude. And while sometimes situations can be hard pressed to show us any hidden blessing, you can better believe that sometimes those are the very ones where the blessings are richest.

So, look around you. When that slow driver in front of you makes you miss the traffic light, count your blessings. They may just have saved your life, and you don’t even know it.