The Everyday Power of Gratitude

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He was a Los Angeles judge at the end of a hard year.

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He was discouraged and distracted, and he was wondering

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what to do next. On New Year's Day, he made a strangely simple

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resolution. Write one handwritten thank you note every

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day for a year. Day after day. Stamps. Envelopes. The whole

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thing. Could a stack of notes really change everything?

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Welcome to Daily Devotions for Busy Lives. I'm Bart Leger, and

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I'm grateful you're joining me on this Thanksgiving day.

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Today's devotion is all about the everyday power of gratitude.

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Not just a holiday, but a posture of the heart that God

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uses to change our attitudes in every season. Thanksgiving comes

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with food, with family, travel, and sometimes chaos. But

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underneath all of that is an invitation. An invitation to

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stop and breathe. And then, remember the goodness of God. 1

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Chronicles 16.34 says,

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If nothing else, the faithful love of God toward us gives us

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every reason to be thankful every day of the year. And for

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those who know Jesus as their Savior, we have even more reason

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to be grateful. Colossians 2.6 and 7 tells us, And now, just as

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you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to

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follow Him. Let your roots grow down into Him, and let your

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lives be built on Him. Then, your faith will grow strong in

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the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with

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thankfulness. As the months rolled on, Judge John Kralik

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wrote to anyone and everyone he could think of. Family,

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coworkers, clients, and even the barista who knew his order. He

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thanked people for specific kindnesses they had shown to him.

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He later said that daily practice reframed his outlook

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and his relationships. His life was in turmoil, but the

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consistent habit of gratitude he began slowly began to change his

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attitude. Thank you note by thank you note. He eventually

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told a story in his memoir, 365 Thank Yous, A Simple Act of

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Gratitude. The big lesson wasn't a one and done for the year. It

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was the power of a daily posture of gratitude that encouraged

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John, and it brightened his whole life. You know, gratitude

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really does something inside of you. It changes the way you see

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God, and it will change the way you see people, and the way you

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approach the ordinary pieces of your day. And it's not because

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life suddenly becomes easy. No, far from it. The Bible says

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God's faithful love endures forever. And because of that,

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gratitude can become a daily rhythm in your life. Colossians

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says when your roots grow down into Christ, your life will

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overflow with thankfulness. In other words, gratitude isn't

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something you force. It's something that grows as you stay

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close to Jesus. But here's something we often forget.

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Gratitude isn't natural. It's not natural most of the time,

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and especially when life is hard. It's something you practice.

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It's something you choose. And just like John Kralik's daily

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notes changed his perspective one envelope at a time, daily

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gratitude will do the same for you. When you deliberately pause

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and thank God, even for small things, you start to notice His

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fingerprints in places you used to overlook. Gratitude helps

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encourage a weary heart, and studies have shown that it

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lowers stress. It grounds you when life feels overwhelming,

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and it opens the door to joy you didn't think you had room for.

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Now, this isn't about pretending everything's perfect, but rather

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it's about remembering that God's good in every season. He's

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good on the mountain, He's good on the valley, and even at the

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messy Thanksgiving table, crowded with foods and kids and

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noise and all the chaos. Because gratitude is how you stay

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anchored. It's Thanksgiving. So here's a simple challenge for

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today. Before the day is over, write down five things God has

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done for you this year, big or small, and then thank Him for

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each one. And if you really want to stretch this muscle, try what

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Judge Kralik did. Write one thank you note. Start with just

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one, handwritten, and watch what it does inside of you. Then put

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it in an envelope, put on a stamp, and then mail it. Lord,

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thank you for your goodness, not just today, but every day. Thank

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you that your faithful love endures forever. Teach me to

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notice your gifts and to slow down and to cultivate a heart

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that overflows with gratitude, even in seasons of change or

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uncertainty. Help me remember that you are good and you are

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near. In Jesus' name, Amen. Thanks for joining me today on

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Daily Devotions for Busy Lives. Remember, gratitude isn't just a

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holiday. It's a daily choice to be thankful that can brighten

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your whole life. Come back next time for more encouragement to

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help you live grounded in God's truth. Until then, God bless and

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have a great day.