Gratitude Is A Way of Life

Hello, Its me again. And I've been thinking, (I know, I know, people warn me about thinking all the time but I still do it.) I've been thinking a lot about life, specifically our lives and how we can live them. People are always looking for the cure to unhappiness or looking for the ultimate "How to live a good life" book. Well, I think that those things don't exist. There is no cure. There is no magical book. There is no secret to life. But there is a secret to being happy in our circumstances. Gratitude.

In his April 2014 Conference address, President Dieter F. Utchdorf stated,
"We can choose to be grateful, no matter what. This type of gratitude transcends whatever is happening around us. It surpasses disappointment, discouragement, and despair. It blooms just as beautifully in the icy landscape of winter as it does in the pleasant warmth of summer. When we are grateful to God in our circumstances, we can experience gentle peace in the midst of tribulation. In grief, we can still lift up our hearts in praise. In pain, we can glory in Christ’s Atonement. In the cold of bitter sorrow, we can experience the closeness and warmth of heaven’s embrace."

That sounds like a pretty comforting promise to me. "In the cold of bitter sorrow, we can experience the closeness and warmth of heaven's embrace." I love that! Our Father in Heaven loves us and is always raining His blessings upon us, but it is when we allow our gratitude to open our eyes that we are more aware of those blessings. When I think of the times that I am the happiest in my life, its been when I recognize the countless ways that God has blessed me. One of my favorite things to think about is the fact that our blessings literally multiply when we count them. 

I am so very grateful for my Heavenly Father and the love that He has for me. I know that He sent His son to the earth to atone for the sins of the world, I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior. I am so very grateful to my Father in Heaven for the family that He has blessed me with, and I am even more grateful that my parents made the decision to be married for time and all eternity in the temple!

Love, Sister Petersen

P.S. I am also super grateful to those out there that take the time to read what I have to say. :)