7 Ways to Practice Daily Gratitude

09.17.2019 By Lisa Appelo 5 Comments

A thankful heart won’t just happen.

If I’ve learned one thing while studying what the Bible has to say about gratitude, it’s that we are by nature ungrateful people.

Our inclination is to grumble, to see the lack in life rather than abundance and to take everyday gifts for granted.

Instead, we need to choose gratitude.

But developing an attitude of gratitude takes intention.

Great, one more chore to add to my already too-long to-do list, you may be thinking.

Let me assure you, this will not be a chore. Taking a few minutes to practice daily gratitude is not only easy, but will change the way you see the rest of your day.

In fact, it will change your life.

7 Ways to Practice Daily Gratitude

We can cultivate gratitude a variety of ways. I’ve done most of these at some point. Some started spontaneously as God began tendering my heart to give thanks and some were deliberate steps that have become daily rhythms.

Let’s look at 7 ways to cultivate an attitude of gratitude

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7 Lessons the Storms of Life can Teach Us

09.04.2019 By Lisa Appelo 6 Comments

It’s been a week. When forecasters first spotted a hurricane that would likely hit Florida, the entire state went on high alert. It was billed as the largest hurricane on record in the Atlantic and while everyone in the state would be affected, it was uncertain precisely where it would hit.

We’ve seen some massive storms over the last few weeks. Irma left thousands with damage and without power. Texas and Louisiana are recovering from record floods after Hurricane Harvey. And western states have been fighting dozens of destructive wildfires.

As I write this, another hurricane is looming and remains a threat for the Eastern United States. Only time will tell whether we’ll need to prepare for another hit or it will spin off harmlessly into the Atlantic.

Truth is, none of us wants to go through a storm. Not just hurricanes, but storms in our finances, in our jobs and in our families. If only the days could be all sunshine and clear skies. Those are the kinds of days we pray for. And often the kinds of days we think we’re entitled to.

But storms are actually vital for us. God uses them not only to reveal himself but to shape us to become more like Christ.

It’s not just that storms teach. It’s that there are lessons we can only understand in a storm.

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A Gratitude Challenge {with free printables for you!}

08.23.2019 By Lisa Appelo 8 Comments

Grace and Gratitude Challenge free printables

I’m not being dramatic when I tell you the practice of daily gratitude has changed my life.

I didn’t start a gratitude journal for any lofty purpose or to become some good Bible study girl.

I started it out of desperation.

Life as I’d known it and as I’d always expected it would be, had collapsed around me. I was staring at the remains of my shattered dreams wondering if my shattered heart could ever be mended.

I was a sudden widow and single mom to seven children who needed me to show up for them, to help shepherd them through their grief and to pick up the shards of life and help put our family back together.

Life felt unbearably bad and I desperately needed to see good.

I knew cerebrally that God was good, but my circumstances sure didn’t make it feel so.

Isn’t God good all the time and all the time God is good?

I needed to see it. I needed to see His hand on me and around me and to know that God’s goodness invades the hardest places life takes us.

And so I began a simple daily practice.

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7 Ways Children Grieve

07.25.2019 By Lisa Appelo 9 Comments

One of THE hardest things after my husband died was not only dealing with my grief, but watching my children try to grapple with theirs.

My youngest two kids were 4 and 6 years old; I had three coming-of-age boys (12, 14 and 16 years old) who needed their dad; a 17-year-old daughter who was her daddy’s girl through and through; and a just launched 19-year-old son.

I learned early on that children deal with loss differently.

Children grieve differently than adults.
Teens grieve differently than preschoolers.
Boys grieve differently than girls.

Even two kids the same age with the same loss can grieve differently because of personality, experience, their home environment or their relationship with the one who’s died.

Kids can suffer many kinds of loss – the death of a sibling, grandparent or parent; a chronic diagnosis for themselves or a family member; a devastating divorce; adoption loss; or even a move that takes them away from friends, school and the familiar.

As a parent navigating our kids through grief, discerning signs of our that grief can be difficult.

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Surrendering Our Children To God Means Surrending Their Entitled Life

07.11.2019 By Lisa Appelo 14 Comments

It was by all accounts an idyllic day.

The sky arching over the ocean was clear cerulean blue after a week of heavy clouds and drenching afternoon downpours. Low tide provided a wide expanse of sand with warm pools edging the sandbars which stalled the tumbling shore breaks.

My two high school boys, backs turned to the sun, had fallen asleep on their towels after a morning deep-sea fishing and I sat in the shade of a large umbrella, alternately keeping tabs on the younger two in the water and the book downloaded to my phone.

Glancing up, I watched my youngest son carry a surf board up from the water. His dad’s surfboard. How many days had I watched his dad walking up this same beach, carrying that same board after a long surf session?

I lingered over this long-legged boy coming up the beach. He’ll be 13 next month. A coming of age without his dad.

Familiar regret colored my thoughts. His dad should have been here. He should have been here to teach him how to surf, to give pointers on throwing the perfect cast net, to help him move from boy to man.

This is not the good life I wanted for you, my heart grieved.

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