by Rebbie Straubing

Gratitude can turn a rock into a flute, a wall into a door, an argument into a hug.

Gratitude is the voluntary act of selecting a focus that affirms what is wanted.

When blessings are large and obvious, gratitude is easy.

When challenges are in your face, gratitude may be a little more difficult to access, but it becomes more valuable than dollars, more useful than the wheel and more powerful than a locomotive.

How can the simple turning of your attention to what some might call the “light and fluffy” do the emotional equivalent of bending steel? This mystery rests deep at the center of the relationship between the heart and the mind.

Like the Wind

The mind is like the wind. It moves with great force but it cannot be seen. We see evidence of its power and the direction of its movement in the things it moves. We see the trees bend and the leaves blow and we know which way the invisible wind is thinking. We see our relationships, our joys and sorrows, our successes and failures and we know which way our mind is blowing.

And just like the wind when it changes direction, when your mind shifts its focus, the stuff of your life moves differently. People behave in ways that surprise and delight you. Beauty reveals itself in the midst of devastation. When the heart of any situation becomes apparent, that situation morphs into its “good twin.” You can feel the shift like the end of a hurricane. That shift is most easily attained through an authentic practice of gratitude.

Say “Thank You” Three Times

It is beneficial to make long gratitude lists. It is cleansing to spend significant periods of time in the process of gratitude. But we don’t always do it. That’s why I’m offering this simple formula that you can apply quickly and easily many times in your day.
In order to apply this instant gratitude “treatment” to your life, you divide your experiences into three categories and select one thing from each category for which to give thanks.

1. Easy Good. Here you give thanks for your blessings. You know what they are. They are the aspects of your life that are simply good. Your home, your family, your health. Pick one, any one and feel your true gratitude for that. Even the most basic of blessings – that you have air to breathe – that you have blue sky above your head – can inspire a deep and authentic field of gratitude.

2. Flipped Good. This one takes a little more skill. Here you look into something that you might experience as a challenge in your life. You find something good within it. You give thanks for the blessing hidden within what you might otherwise consider to be a problem. Maybe it’s slowing you down and giving you an opportunity to look within. Maybe it’s reflecting some inner turmoil and through its outward appearance you can see it more clearly and begin to heal. Most often, the difficulties we experience offer the blessing of exaggerated contrast. By showing us what we don’t want, we know more clearly what we do want.* Giving thanks for the bold message encoded in the problem sends a message back to the problem. Your gratitude tells the problem its job is done. Your gratitude allows the problem to dissipate. It gives way to its opposite. It leaves room for the fulfillment of what your heart truly desires on that subject.

3. Intended Good. This one is fun. You give thanks for the fulfillment of your unfulfilled desires. You give thanks as if your unfulfilled desires are already true for you. When you touch that feeling of gratitude you bring your desires closer to manifestation.

The result of this process produces a silent statement something like this:

Thank you for the air I am breathing. (Pause and reflect.)

Thank you for the opportunity for revelation offered by this pain. (Pause and reflect.)

Thank you for my newfound strength and optimism. (Pause and reflect.)

Keep your statements true and feel them deeply. Your situation transforms as a result of the power of your gratitude.

© 2007 Rebbie Straubing

* For a more in depth explanation of the value of contrast, look to the teachings of Abraham at www.abraham-hicks.com

Dr. Rebbie Straubing is author of “Rooted in the Infinite: The Yoga of Alignment.” You can instantly download the beginning of the book at http://RootedintheInfinite.com. Rebbie is a workshop leader, Abraham Coach and spiritual writer. Her free e-course, “7 Secrets for Manifesting Your Heart’s Desire”, is available at www.YOFA.net. Sign up for her remote inner alignment sessions at www.AlignmentforHealing.com