There’s probably not a day that goes by that we don’t complain about something. It could be about stress from work, a fight with a friend or something simple like having no cell reception. But every now and then we really need to think about our lives and realize that our circumstances are probably not as bad as we think. Many times our complaints are things that some people only wish they could experience.

I was watching a special on the Jaycee Dugard story the other night and thought to myself how grateful I am for the life that I have. For those of you not familiar with Jaycee Dugard, she was kidnapped when she was only 11 years old from her bus stop. She was repeatedly raped by her captor and eventually had 2 of his babies. She was locked up in his backyard  for 18 years until she was finally found when she was 29. Now just imagine for a minute spending your entire childhood like this. Never being able to go to school, have friends, or even go outside in the sunshine. All everyday experiences we think as “normal” and take for granted. Thank God she was finally freed, but that is 18 years she will never get back, memories she will live with forever.

There are so many people in the world that live in horrible conditions or have to fear for their life each day. I have been blessed with so many amazing things in my life and have so much to be happy about. So whenever I find myself feeling annoyed or complaining about something insignificant, I stop to remember all the things in my life that I’m grateful to have. I’m fortunate to have a roof over my head, a bed to sleep in, clean water to drink and bathe in and have people in my life who love and care for me. I’m thankful to know how to drive and to have the freedom to go where I want, when I want. When we take the time to analyze the lives we live and acknowledge the everyday blessings we take for granted, it brings us to a more grateful and positive frame of mind.

When you find yourself frustrated because you don’t want to wake up early for work, be thankful that you have a bed to sleep in and a job that pays you. When you get annoyed that your power went off for an hour and you missed your favorite show, just be glad that you actually have electricity and can afford a TV to watch. Of course we have the right to have these feelings and it is only natural to stress about everyday things in our lives, but the important thing is to never forget the blessings we have. Always rejoice in the small yet abundant gifts God has given us instead of taking them for granted.

Quotes on this topic:

“Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for.”
― Epicurus

“True happiness is to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future, not to amuse ourselves with either hopes or fears but to rest satisfied with what we have, which is sufficient, for he that is so wants nothing. The greatest blessings of mankind are within us and within our reach. A wise man is content with his lot, whatever it may be, without wishing for what he has not.”
― Seneca

“We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures.”
― Thornton Wilder

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.”
— Melody Beattie

“If you can’t be content with what you have received, be thankful for what you have escaped.”
— Author Unknown