If you had to choose between worry or gratitude, which would you choose?
The fact is that you are already choosing between worry and gratitude every day of your lives. You are given the choice. Accept the choice that will fill your life to overflowing.
This isn't new to you. You already know this. Now it is up to you to do it - to choose gratitude. Just choose it. Just choose to eat the sweet grapes of gratefulness over nagging grapes of worry, grapes that you cannot seem to finish with, grapes that hang over you, lash at you really. If you were a musician, you would back up your songs with a chorus you like. Of course, you would. You wouldn't hire singers who can't carry a tune and who don't further your music along.
We are talking about your life. We are talking about clear-cut choices for your life. To get your mind off worry, you have to put it onto something else. Gratefulness will win every time.
It is the future you worry about. It is your future you worry about. You have heard to be in the now. Good idea. Worry is not in the now. It is in the future. The same for regret, it is about the past. Neither worry nor regret hold you in good stead, and, yet, they seem to hold you. You have tried and tried to get away from worry and regret, and yet they play their old tunes, and you listen to them. Confess, you have had a preponderance of worry and regret and occasional bouts of gladness and gratefulness. If you don't like the idea of being consciously grateful, then how about the idea of gladness? Gratitude and gladness are the same, and they are facts of life. Worry and regret are not the only ones.
When you have a worry about your capability, for example, take a moment to be glad that you have your mind to even worry! Take another stance.
Remind yourself how glad you are that you have arms to carry groceries for you and legs that take you.
Remind yourself how glad you are that you have eyes to see and ears to hear and a tongue to speak.
How glad you are to be a living being! How glad you are to be a living being in a changing world! How glad you are to have been blessed with the miracle of human life.
If you have illness, be glad for your heart that beats.
If you cannot speak, be glad for silence.
Be glad for breath.
If there is too much noise where you live, be glad for sound.
Beloveds, get rid of your hang-ups, and your hang-ups are worry and regret. Be glad you have the ability to change your thoughts. Be glad.
For much of your life, you have held onto fear and didn't know how to let it go. I am showing you how to let fear go. Turn your attention on something else.
Worry amounts to the twittering of fear.
Turn the other cheek, beloveds. Consider one cheek fear, and the other cheek appreciation. Favor appreciation. Clasp it to your heart.
Even appreciate fear because it leads you to lie down in green pastures.
Appreciate doubt because it leads you to confidence.
Appreciate experience in life. Appreciate that there is plenty to love. Appreciate your ability to appreciate. Appreciate your ability to shine. Appreciate the sun, and appreciate the moon. Appreciate summer, and appreciate winter.
Let appreciation be your mentor. Appreciate that you learn in life and go forward. You follow a new trail now.