See the Unseen: Acknowledge God’s Blessings in Your Daily Life
Divine Blessings Surround You Each Moment in Your Life
“When you keep your thoughts positive and focused on the possibilities, you are better able to find all the blessings that God wants you to have.” — Chris Johnston
Namaste, My Brothers and Sisters,
I extend a warm welcome to each of you. May God keep you and your family enveloped in joy always.
In this essay, we seek to uplift our spirits with one of the most blissful truths of life:- God is showering His blessings upon us every day.
Let’s embark on this journey of joyful discovery together.
Section I. Context
It is a sad reality that human life is almost akin to a sea of negativity.
The reason is, as the noted psychologist Dr Rick Hanson discovered, our minds are like Teflon for positive feelings and Velcro for negative feelings.
In other words, as we lead our day-to-day lives, we just overlook the positive feelings arising out of so many worthy tasks we successfully keep accomplishing each day.
Instead, we repeatedly focus on the negative feelings arising out of just a few things that went wrong during any particular day.
This trait of negativity arose as a survival mechanism during our caveman days of antiquity and got ingrained within our genes ever since then.
As an unfortunate consequence, such a deep-rooted negative bias continues to remain strong within each of us even now.
(Source: Rick Hanson Ph.D., https://www.rickhanson.net)
The next section will look at the calamitous outcome of this universal trait.
Section II. A Typical Way of Living in the 21st Century
In a world abundant with conveniences, our modern life should be much happier vis-à-vis the daily life earlier. But has this expectation come true?
The answer is a clear ‘no’.
The typical weekday routine of an office goer will provide an illustration of why. It is a picture of stark contrast between expectation and reality.
This routine commences with his reluctant awakening to the jarring sound of a mobile alarm, followed by a hurried breakfast.
Then comes the ordeal of commuting through the hassles of traffic to the office, where the poor man has to struggle with immense pressure all through the day to chase targets.
This sad narrative continues in the evening.
Upon returning home, braving commuting hassles once more, the executive is then faced with sorting out the endless domestic issues of family life and the evening speeds by in a jiffy.
As the day draws to a close, stress rules the mind as he sinks into an uneasy slumber. The next morning, this monotonous cycle starts once more.
Is this what our so-called modern life was supposed to lead us to?
Section III. An Alternative Way of Living
In this depressing backdrop, there is hope still!
We can restore harmony in our life if we try.
And we can do so by filling our lives with gratitude over one eternal truth:- God is showering us with blessings in so many ways every day!
Due to our ingrained negative bias, however, we tend to gloss over this. So, there is a pressing need to cultivate a deliberate awareness of such good fortune.
This is where daily self-reflection comes into the picture.
Defined as the mental process used to increase understanding of who we are, what our values are, and why we think/act/feel the way we do, the practice of self-reflection nourishes us from within.
This is because the very nature of this practice requires us to slow down, consciously cultivate an inner discipline of stillness and become filled with the humbling realisation that so many times we are being blessed!
This rings especially true in moments when an unanticipated blessing graced our daily life. Here, the scale holds little significance; what counts is the precise timing that will make it clear that it was an unseen Hand that made it happen.
A common example from our day-to-day life, to which all of us can relate, will be that of a weekday morning when despite the extra-ordinarily heavy pressure of traffic due to some road blockage, we could still reach our workplace on time.
And we will find many other instances of a similar kind if we start self-reflecting about it each day. A structured process, as given in the next section, will be of much help here.
Section IV. A Structured Process of Self-Reflection
Here is a step-by-step approach to self-reflection. Daily practice is the key.
First, set aside a dedicated time each day. The early morning hour with its built-in stillness is the best. But, for most of us, the hour just before bedtime may be a more convenient option.
At the appointed time, sit down in a quiet place filled with solitude.
Keep some flowers/light a scented candle/play soft music to create the ambience.
And it is always helpful to keep a dedicated journal nearby so that you can record the insights you get.
Then start the formal process of self-reflection with deep breathing and a short meditation.
As your mind gets quiet, slowly go over your entire day and gently ask yourself reflective questions such as “Today, what made me feel happy…what could I have handled better…what is my main learning?” and so on.
These introspective queries gradually prompt insights to emerge.
Finally, bring this nourishing process to a gentle close by expressing gratitude to God for the insights you received.
This process recalls to my mind the ideal set by the former Stanford University President, Henry Eyring, who used to himself every night: “How did I see God’s hand in my life today?”
Let me describe its miraculous outcome in his own words:
“I wrote down a few lines every day for years. I never missed a day no matter how tired I was or how early I would have to start the next day.
Before I would write, I would ponder this question: “Have I seen the hand of God reaching out to touch us or our children or our family today?”
As I kept at it, something began to happen. As I would cast my mind over the day, I would see evidence of what God had done for one of us that I had not recognized in the busy moments of the day.
As that happened, and it happened often, I realized that trying to remember had allowed God to show me what He had done.
More than gratitude began to grow in my heart. Testimony grew. I became ever more certain that our Heavenly Father hears and answers prayers.
…And I grew more confident that the Holy Ghost can bring all things to our remembrance — even things we did not notice or pay attention to when they happened.””
(Source: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org)
Likewise, we may also take care to jot down our blessings in a journal every night and keep glancing through past entries regularly.
We may then be able to discern a clear pattern that God is showering His blessings in our lives too.
Section V. The Parting Message of Hope
When we transform our practice of self-reflection into a daily habit, we are likely to set a remarkable process into motion.
This is the wonderful mechanism of the ‘virtuous cycle’.
As our awareness of the blessings in our life deepens, a growing sense of gratitude towards our Heavenly Father is likely to take root within us.
Such a positive mindset holds the potential to draw even more blessings into our lives in future.
So, come, and rejoice in the profound truth that we’re always enveloped in divine blessings at every turn in this ebb and flow of life.
Thanks a lot for reading my essay.
Bidding You a Fond Adieu,
The Uplifting Essayist
A Gentle Call to Action:
Just close your eyes now.
Think over anything unexpectedly good that happened in your life in the recent past.
It can be anything, big or small or trivial...just anything that made a difference to you!
And then give silent thanks to God whose blessing made it possible.
Your life will get uplifted for sure.
Thank you.
