Exercise

Exercise. Many of us have experienced that when we begin a new form of exercise, be it swimming, walking, running, playing a new sport, using weights, at the beginning we don’t do it that well. But as we continue to do it, we get better. It’s pretty simple, really.

I was thinking recently of a command in the Bible: “Be thankful.” There are many such directives from God that we don’t think of as commandments. We tend to think of commandments as “Don’t steal. Don’t lie. Don’t murder.” But there are so many more other things that God tells us, and one of them is: “Be thankful.”

Some of us are born with a more positive, thankful disposition. Others aren’t. But I believe that everyone can exercise the thankfulness muscle, and improve, just as physical exercise improves our physical ability. Besides being told to be thankful by God (which should be good enough for those who claim to want to follow Him), there are studies done by neurologists that show that the pathways to our brain made by thankfulness have a positive impact on our brains and overall health vs. negativity, which has a detrimental effect on our brains and overall health.

So I encourage us all to exercise. Exercise being thankful.

A year and a half ago, I read an article by someone who said that every morning she writes down in a journal three things that she is thankful for from the day before. So I began doing that. Some days there are way more than three, and I admit that some days I have had to work a little bit harder to find three. I recently skimmed over what I have written down in the last year and a half and was encouraged by all the blessings.

Over the many years I have lived, I have on occasion been really irritated by someone close to me and found that as I right down a list of all the things that I appreciate about that person, my attitude changes and I am able to be thankful for them.

As well as exercising your thankfulness muscle privately and towards God, I encourage you to exercise telling others what you are thankful about them – whether it’s family members, friends, the cashier at the store, or someone else who serves you in some way. A “thank you” with a big smile (they can hear the smile in your voice underneath your mask) will brighten their day, which will brighten yours.

All ready to exercise with me and get fit in the thankfulness department? Give me your ideas and suggestions, or just let me know what you are thankful for.