Giving thanks is the expression of gratitude, and gratitude is one of the most beautiful secrets in spiritual life.

Gratitude is an expression of love, and love is something which flows from the Creator of the universe through all forms of life and all forms of manifestation. Without love, life in the universe cannot exist. Love is the universal force of preservation which holds creation in manifestation.

The Natural Flow of Love

Love is as natural as the universe. By design, there is a tension between the forces of creation and universal love. It is this tension which controls the size of the universe, holding it within its envelope. It is this tension which regulates the size of an electron’s orbit around a nucleus. It is universal love which forms the force of attraction which retains electrons in their orbits, making atoms possible and therefore the existence of life as we know it.

You can block love, or you can allow it to flow naturally through you. Falling in love with another person is an allowance of the flow of love through your heart. In a world where everything has the appearance of separateness, it is a surrender to the underlying unity of all life. It is a place of apparent vulnerability, a willingness to take the risk that the illusion of separation will once again return if that love is later lost.

When you allow your heart to open to the universe’s flow of love, gratitude comes with that flow. Gratitude for being alive, for just existing, for just being in the flow of the adventure of life. Gratitude for the Sun that gives us life. Gratitude for the Earth that gives us our home in the cosmos. Gratitude for the people that you love, and for those who share your journey through life.

Gratitude flows unimpeded from an open heart. When you allow it, it flows as freely as the sunshine, unobstructed by judgments or conditions.

Quality of Life

Use the following affirmation. Keep repeating it while, each time, thinking more and more of what the words mean.

It adds new meaning to the words, “Quality of life.”

It really works! Try it now.

Gratitude affirmation

I am grateful for life 
And all that I love 
I am grateful for the Earth 
And the Sun up above 
I am grateful for my spirit 
And my inner being 
For the One that is within 
And the joy of this feeling