This afternoon I was caught by surprise at the sound of robins singing (loudly) outside my front door. I actually looked toward my new phone thinking it had to be a “ring” that somehow had been programmed accidentally. What a rush of joy I experienced, discovering this early herald of Spring in late March! What a blessing…and what an opportunity I had to praise God.
James Bryan Smith considers consciously counting our blessings as a very powerful opportunity and a spiritual exercise. In his book, “The Good and Beautiful God” he suggests starting a list of all the wonderful things with which God has blessed us.
“Pay attention to the details in your life. Look for the hidden things…start small…come up with a list of 10 things…keep adding to it each day...most of us are accustomed to waking up thinking about our problems. This exercise will help us shift our focus…to the many things that are beautiful and wonderful.“
A daily practice this simple can change our total outlook. It can change us. It’s soul training that can transform our hearts just as athletic training strengthens our bodies. This ongoing habit will then turn into a lifestyle. The same author quotes musician and author, David Crowder:
“When good is found and we embrace it with abandon, we embrace the Giver of it…every second is an opportunity to praise. There is a choosing to be made. A choosing at each moment. This is the praise Habit. Finding God moment by revelatory moment, in the sacred and the mundane, in the valley and on the hill, in triumph and tragedy, and living praise erupting because of it. That is what we are made for.“
“Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable…” I Corinthians 9:25
Start your list. Start your Spring Soul Training. The robins are already singing!
Resources for Going Deeper:
"The Good and Beautiful God, Falling in Love with the God Jesus Knows" by James Bryan Smith
"The Good and Beautiful God, Falling in Love with the God Jesus Knows" by James Bryan Smith
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