The Issue With Being Grateful...

At one point or another in life we're all guilty of being ungrateful...and more often than not I don't actually believe it's on purpose.

I don't think anyone strives to be ungrateful for the things that they have, the blessings they are given or the opportunities that they are allotted in life. I think more so it comes down to it being so hard to see the good when you're also being faced with bad.

No matter if it's in love, your every day life or situations with family having good things happen are often out shadowed by the bad things that tend to follow right behind any good situation.

And we focus so much on those bad things that the good even though it's still there disappears...

Let's take for example something that happened with me.

Little do any of you know all of last year I was basically out of work for the whole year. Like I had no job...no hints of a job zero success while looking for one. So after a while that really started to weigh heavily on me. For the first time in my life since I could remember I couldn't take care of myself  in the way I needed to and that made me feel really bad. I would almost go as far to saying that I was pretty much depressed it was effecting how I felt about myself, my relationships, everything.

After months and months...and months of relentless searching and praying and just hoping that there would be some sort of a breakthrough this past June I did FINALLY find a job. When I started working I was so pleased with myself, that I had not given up and made it through my struggle. Pleased that I had found other ways to survive like couponing and food stamps (yes im not afraid to admit I got assistance) to provide for my little family when I felt like I had nothing to offer. I was so overjoyed with the fact that I could now monetarily provide and be a real person again and not have to depend on anyone else.

I was grateful.

 However...no more then a month later after getting the job, because I turned 26 I lost my health insurance. For those of you youngins who don't know when you turn 26 if you have not already taken on your own health insurance and your still on your parents you get the boot!! The worst part of the whole situation was that the job that I had just taken was only part time meaning NO BENEFITS. So I went from overjoyed to stressed and worried about my situation. I completely forgot about being grateful for the blessing of being able to take care of myself and only focused on the negative of not having health insurance and the fear that if something happened to me.

I thought even tough I was making money, what if i get sick, I couldn't afford to go to a doctor let alone the hospital and to me someone who has a decent amount of allergies and a few health conditions not being able to get medical attention it was a very scary thing for me.

I couldn't be grateful for what I had because I was focused on what I didn't have. But what I  had to learn was being focused on what you don't have can not only take away from your happiness, it can also take away from your future blessings and take away from your ability to live your life in a positive manner.

It wasn't until I was able to see that because I was getting so caught up on this one thing that I didn't have I was missing all the other good that I was doing for myself. Being able to become independent again, being able to pay my bills, being able to not have to depend on someone if there was an emergency and I needed money, starting my saving account again, the ability to go out with friends, no longer being depressed or stressing those around me because I was unhappy and really just being able to experience life again that I couldn't before because I was broke lol. Even just being able to feel good about myself  because I was the person providing for me. I was sitting there taking all that progress and of that happiness away for myself because I then became focused on my negative instead of my blessing not realizing that if you focus enough on your blessing and be grateful and thankful in what you have more blessings will come.

I tried really hard to keep myself positive and tried not to worry about the what if's of the situation that I was in, I mean granted not having health insurance is very scary but how often do people really use their health insurance. I tried to focus on the fact that I don't I don't get sick that often and possibly wouldn't need to utilize insurance anytime soon and in the mean time continued to pray and remain focused on the positives in the moment and just being grateful in what I had. I started focusing more on my blogging and building my brand I also focused on my job and working harder while I was at work and when I did the blessings came. I started booking events and getting paid for my blogging, I got a promotion at work along with a raise and more hours that *drum roll* gave me the ability to get health insurance!!

WONT HE DO IT!

And I honestly believe the only reason that any of those things happened was because I focus on being grateful for what I was already given. I realized just as I had been blessed before, more could be done. Not having everything I wanted wasn't the end, not having what you want will make you work to get it and make you pray for more. Not having what you want is motivation to be better and motivation.

Understanding that the blessings that you have at this moment didn't have to be given to you in the first place and seeing where you are now versus where you were makes you be grateful and being grateful is the highest honor that you can give to God.

 I mean come on no one wants to be taken for granted or feel as though what they've given you you're not grateful for especially God lol.

Now I didn't mean to get all preachy and everything I just kind of wanted to share my experiences in struggles with being grateful and trying to remain focused on the positive because it is a struggle but like I said before I don't think anyone sets out to be ungrateful for what they have I think it's just really easy to get caught up in seeing whats missing instead of what  you have and appreciating that.

I think everyone should look ahead at the future or at what they don't have as inspiration to work harder to gain it, not as something to make you forget all the blessings that you already have in front of you.

Be grateful be thankful and be blessed

Until next time,

XO Deanna