A light bulb went on when I texted those words to a friend: “Gratitude is actually the key”. She had just started jogging for the first time in her adult life. She was doing increments of 3 minutes running and walking. She said she was just learning to be thankful for the small steps.
Celebrating the Little
Celebrating the small steps in the right direction is important in succeeding at any goal. Many times we feel that it has to be the big win that is celebrated. What about the little accomplishments along the way? It is the attitude of gratitude that motivates us to continue going forward. It is the endurance fuel. Without it, the journey looks too long and never-ending. Without it, the elephant looks huge and formidable. But each day, little at a time, we can reach our goal if we stay focus on what is right.
Keeping the focus
An attitude of gratitude keeps us focus on what is right. It adjusts the lens, transforming our reality. Instead of waiting for the bathroom scale to give us its approval for attaining the right weight, we need to celebrate the fact that we are moving. We are working out, or that we are making healthier choices if not all the time—most of the time. That in itself keeps the mind healthy.
We give the scale too much power, allowing it to dictate how we feel about ourselves and even about life in general. Let’s celebrate what we are doing well.
Being Thankful No Matter What
No matter what we look like, we need to be thankful. We need to stop body-shaming ourselves and others. How can we love others if we don’t love ourselves? If Christ loves us unconditionally, then we should love ourselves and others without judgment. It is not about perfection and it will never ever be. It is about us being transformed to become like Christ in our thinking and actions. Being able to accept our bodies is important in our relationship with God and others. If the eye is filled with light, then the whole body is filled with light (Matthew 6:23). A healthy perception of ourselves is based on our ability to see correctly. In order to see correctly, we have to accept and love ourselves with all its flaws and shortcomings, so that God’s love can penetrate and flow through us, transforming us and touching the lives of others. In essence, we become vessels of his love. So whether we are a pear, apple, rectangle, hourglass, inverted triangle or whatever, we are beautiful.
The eyes are the window of the soul. Beauty is more of a spiritual concept than a physical attribute. When we truly accept the Father’s love for ourselves, we are able to see the beauty within us and within others. When we look in the mirror at ourselves, we see who we truly are—a beautiful BEING—made in the image of God. The body will reflect what is inside. It is able to be transformed from within. When the body is transformed from within the right way, it learns to work for and with us not against us. We all want our bodies to work for and with us, so let’s celebrate it with a thankful heart.
