I wonder what you would think if I told you that gratefulness looks a lot like seeing? Like looking. Like noticing. Like remembering.

I’ve always confused it with a “doing.”

But it’s not a “do.” It’s a “be.”

Have you ever noticed the wording?

“Be” grateful.

I get the two confused often. I make almost everything into a “do.” A work. A chore. A check off my list.

I wonder what you would think if I told you that gratefulness looks a lot like seeing? Like looking. Like noticing. Like remembering.

I’ve always confused it with a “doing.”

But it’s not a “do.” It’s a “be.”

Have you ever noticed the wording?

“Be” grateful.

I get the two confused often. I make almost everything into a “do.” A work. A chore. A check off my list.

Read Bible
Get groceries
Workout
Be grateful
Pay bills
Buy birthday present
Be brave
Help kids with homework
Be kind
Do laundry

Yet being grateful isn’t a “do,” it’s a “be.”

And “being” grateful looks a lot like “seeing.”

Seeing all that you have been given. Seeing the good. Seeing God.

Lately, my kids are fighting like cats and dogs. I’m sure all the moms know what I’m talking about. And for those that don’t have kids, I’m sure you remember, clearly, fighting with a sibling. I feel like a referee most days and I long for a more peaceful home. The other day in the quiet, after the chaos (four kids, three of them boys), I began to see that one of my children who likes to police everybody, all of the time, may just have a heart for justice. And all of my kids have a voice. While they use it to argue or fight right now, one day they will use it to speak up, to fight for the right things, to fight for those that don’t have a voice. I noticed something I hadn’t seen before. I am grateful for their voices.

Grateful is defined as “warmly or deeply appreciative of kindness or benefits received; thankful.”

Psalm 7:17 (Living Bible) says, “Oh, how grateful and thankful I am to the Lord because He is so good. I will sing praise to the name of the Lord who is above all lords.”

Being grateful is seeing all of the ways that the Lord has been good to you.

It’s noticing the beauty even in the midst of pain.

Cultivating a grateful heart is . . .

The remainder of this essay can be read here.

xo . trina