Three Ways to Cultivate Gratitude for this Day the Lord has Made

This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. (Ps 118:24)

Three Ways to Cultivate Gratitude for this Day the Lord has Made

Dear Sister in Christ, 🌻

How often do you wake up already carrying yesterday’s regrets or tomorrow’s worries? I’m raising my own hand here!

We replay a conversation we wish had gone differently. We stress over problems we haven’t even faced yet. We imagine worst case scenerios, and, before our feet even hit the floor, our hearts are already heavily burdened.

Can I gently remind you of something your heart may need today? Something that my heart needs as well …

We are living in a day we will never get back. Not the day when everything finally falls into place, our prayers are answered, the uncertainty is gone, the relationship is restored, the finances feel easier or we finally understand what is coming next.

Today.

This ordinary day. This very ordinary cup of coffee or tea. This quiet moment before everyone else wakes up. This conversation with a neighbor or loved one. This drive to school or work. This dinner around the table.

This day is our life, too.

And I wonder how often we miss the life God is giving us because we are waiting for a very different one?

We tell ourselves, I’ll be grateful when this season is over. When things settle down. When I know the answer. When God finally does what I asked Him to do.

But, Sister, what if gratitude isn’t something we save for the other side? What if gratitude is one of the ways God holds our hearts while we are still in the middle?

Paul admonished us to “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thes 5:18)

Not because everything is good.
But because God is still good.

So, if your heart has been hurried, heavy, distracted, or simply tired lately, here are three simple ways to cultivate and hold gratitude for this day God has placed in your hands to steward …

Slow Down Enough to Take Notice

Sometimes gratitude isn’t absent because God hasn’t been good. Perhaps gratitude is missing because we simply haven’t been noticing?

Our minds can become so occupied with what needs to happen next that we can’t see what is happening right now.

But today, let’s look again!
His mercy is here in this very moment …

Maybe it’s sunlight filtering through a window. A husband warmly reaching for your hand. A dear friend who remembers to pray for you. A child sweetly giggling in the next room. A Bible filled with promises you can still cling to.

“Every good and perfect gift is from above.” (James 1:17)

Sometimes we are looking for God in the extraordinary while He is quietly surrounding us with His goodness in our very ordinary.

Today, let’s whisper: “Father, open my eyes. Help me see what I’ve been rushing past.”
And then take notice and respond …

Remember What God Has Already Brought You Through

Let’s be real … there are days when gratitude doesn’t come easily. On those days, I have to look backward. Not to rehearse any regrets but to remember His faithfulness …

Ps 103:2 admonishes us to: “Praise the LORD, my soul, and forget not all his benefits.”

My friend, take time to remember …

The day God made a way when it looked like there was no way. The prayer He answered, the door He closed for your protection, the heartbreak you thought would destroy you and the strength that showed up when yours was all but gone?

Look at how far God has carried you!

You have evidence. Your life contains beautiful fingerprints of His faithfulness. And if He was faithful there, He will be faithful here. This is gratitude with anchored roots!

Anchored gratitude sounds like this: “Lord, I don’t understand what You are doing right now but I remember Who You’ve been to me and I can certainly trust you now.”

King David did not have an easy life. But, despite the hardships he endured, he was able to cultivate an insatiable delight and a deep gratitude for the goodness of his God that the enemy could not take away. How?

Throughout his Psalms, we can find David anchoring his gratitude and delight by remembering and rehearsing the undeniable evidence of God’s steadfast love and faithfulness to him in his life. Despite all of his struggles, he chose to park his mind on God’s goodness to recenter himself in the Lord, no matter the situation.

I love his declaration in Psalm 63:7 “Because you are my helper, I sing for joy in the shadow of your wings” (NLT).

Stop Asking Today to Carry Tomorrow

This is the one my heart needs the most! Perhaps you need it as well?

We do not have to figure everything out today. We don’t need every question answered nor do we need to know how the story ends. We don’t have to solve next month, next year, or even next week before we go to bed tonight.

Jesus told us: “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.” (Matthew 6:34)

Why is Jesus not worried about our tomorrow? Because He’s already there.

God promises to go before His people, clearing obstacles and providing support in their journeys (Isaiah 45:2). Anxiety loves to lure us down dark and twisty roads into a version of tomorrow that lacks the presence of Christ. But gratitude gently brings us back to the present moment and reminds us of the truth.

Tomorrow calls to you … what if this or that happens?
Gratitude says … Jesus gave me fresh grace for today! I will stay right here with Him.

The Lord gave me Lam 3:22–23 as the foundational verse for my blog. His promise to pour fresh grace and mercy into each brand new morning was a pivitol turning point for this girl who used to let every mistake define her.

This means tomorrow will bring fresh grace and mercy for you that you haven’t even bumped into yet. Why? Because it’s meant to strengthen and carry you tomorrow, not today.

Dear friend, unclench your hands. Release what hasn’t happened yet.

Come back to this moment. Come back to this breath. Come back to this day. There is grace and goodness here. We can tend to God’s presence without fear of tomorrow …

Doesn’t this remind you of this beloved verse, Proverbs 31:25: She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future (NLT).

Let’s pray …

Father, thank You for helping me be present today. Thank You for what You have already brought me through. Thank You that I don’t have to know what tomorrow holds because I know Who holds me.

Help me stop waiting for a different life before I become grateful for this one. Teach me to recognize and treasure Your fingerprints in the small things. Teach me to fully receive today instead of rushing through it. Because this day … imperfect, unfinished, ordinary, beautiful … is still a sweet gift from You. Amen.

“This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Ps 118:24

My friend, don’t miss today while waiting for tomorrow.
There is something in the here and now worth thanking God for.

Look for it.
Hold it close.
Live lavishly loved in Christ … today!