"Gratitude is the Best Defense"

"Gratitude is the Best Defense"

​This is my second time writing this post, I had a mercury retrograde moment. Someone knocked on my door, I jumped hit the wrong key, and it took me to another website. I was about to save, I was happy that I was almost done. I have learned a lesson. I already knew this lesson, but I am reminded now, save as you go. We have all heard that before. Right?

According to Dictionary.com, Defense is, 'resistance against attack; protection."
Gratitude protects us as it is the best weapon that we can use against unhappiness, complaints, frustration, anger, and despair. Gratitude protects us from the unfortunate effects that complaining can bring us. Complaining about anything brings more of what we are complaining about. I have experienced this firsthand. 

Whenever I have gone off on tangents complaining about my situation, people, or whatever, I have felt shame and guilt later. I have apologized to the Most High, had to forgive myself for complaining. What am I griping for? There is always someone worse off than us. We complain when we are afraid. Fear brings complaining, when faith is the answer to walking in the darkness. I have been amazed at what a little faith has done for me.

When we are unable to control our situation, and we are frustrated by it, we become afraid, then we start to complain. We are afraid that of what will happen, will it get worse, how will I fix this? We could use just a little faith in these times because that's all it takes is a little faith. When I find myself complaining, I speak to my subconscious mind, "I command my  subconscious mind to destroy all of these unnecessary complaints, and lead me in the direction of faith. " 

We don't have to vocalize our complaints and unhappiness for them to pick up momentum and spiral downward into unpleasant occurrences. If we keep thinking the same dissatisfied thoughts about our undesired circumstances or situations, we will conjure up the energies of creating more of these unpleasant circumstances. 

There is always something to be grateful for. We can be grateful for just having a sound mind, for having food to eat, and safe shelter. We can be grateful for our sight, senses, intuition, our limbs, the ability to speak and understand. Some of us not only have shelter, but beautiful homes with beautiful furniture. We can be grateful to have a car to drive, some of us have luxury cars. We can be grateful to have a way to make money. We have love, people who love us is a major thing to be grateful for, life is not promised to any of us. We can be grateful for great health even if it's not so great at the moment, just keep saying it, you will be surprised at what happens. When we are grateful for the things that haven't happen, we begin to manifest them. In our moment of frustration, or loss of hope, we can use gratitude as our defense.

As I complained, everything in my life got worse, and then I became more fearful. I have been stuck in my root chakra, fear of survival, basic needs being met, and I was filled with lowered emotions all stemmed from fear of what would happen to me. Upon reading and researching my way out of my distressed state of mind, Spirit led me to gratitude, and the benefits of being grateful.

"Gratitude research has repeatedly shown that thankful people have higher energy levels, are more relaxed, are happier and are healthier. Naturally, these gratitude benefits lead us to the conclusion that being grateful has the potential to lengthen our lifespans." https://www.consciouslifestylemag.com/benefits-of-gratitude-research/

"Acts of kindness and feelings of gratitude flood our brains with a chemical called dopamine. When we are truly grateful for something (or someone) our brains reward us by giving us a natural high. Because this feeling is so good, we are motivated to feel it again and become more inclined to give thanks, and also to do good for others." https://www.consciouslifestylemag.com/benefits-of-gratitude-research/

"Grateful people experience fewer aches and pains and report feeling healthier than other people, according to a 2012 study published in Personality and Individual Differences."
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/what-mentally-strong-people-dont-do/201504/7-scientifically-proven-benefits-gratitude

"One of the most intriguing aspects of Emoto’s work with photographing water crystals revealed the healing power of love and gratitude.
He discovered that when the words “love and gratitude” were directed toward water, the most beautiful and the most intricate water crystal was formed." https://www.waterbenefitshealth.com/water-and-gratitude.html  
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Being grateful improves our health, our spirit, and our energy. Whenever we are grateful in the midst of chaos pleasant change will shift and take order. Our gratitude shows our strength in faith. It shows that we have patience to endure the process of whatever the Universe is showing to us. I am grateful for everything that I have been through in my life, it has all brought me to awareness. There was a time when I couldn't say this, I was too angry. I write in my gratitude journal upon waking to set my day. I write with my non-dominant hand for appreciation, and so that I can feel every word that I write. It is a challenge for me to write with my left hand, some days are easier than others, but I am committed to it and consistent with it. I have gratitude that I have two hands, or hands at all. Do you know how much we use our hands?

I am grateful for what people call the small things, for there are no small things, every thing is mighty. I use gratitude when things seemed to be going wrong in my life, and I use gratitude in the present tense. I speak it so it shall be. I state how I am grateful for the things that I would like to see come true in my experience. If someone was listening to me that would think that I have lost my mind, because I state gratitude affirmations for things like they have already happened. The only time we have is now, we have no control over the past or the unforeseen future, all is now. So when you say, "I am grateful for ...... whatever you want to be, even if it's not true, once you begin to say it, it will strike a cord in your mind, sending a signal, and you will start to feel it like it is true. I don't care what it is, how unreasonable or unlikely it seems. When you say I am grateful, you are saying that you are grateful for it now. Like for instance, "I am grateful for enjoying great adventures traveling the world." I feel that, I get a spark of excitement just typing it, and if I continue to say that, it will be true. What we continue to say, happens, it comes true. 

Gratitude is the defense for any nasty mood that we may crawl into. It is the defense for unpleasant experiences because we can find God in all of them. We can find what the experience is trying to teach us and be grateful for that. It works for people who have been difficult to deal with, as we look for the good parts that we love about them, and be grateful for them. It changes how we see them and it takes the stain out of our heart.

Being in a state of gratitude has brought me so far from an abyss that I don't even look back, I just find more gratitude in looking forward. Even when I have felt that my relationships weren't going well, I started saying gratitude affirmations and writing them about the person, and those relationships turned around. I wrote gratitude affirmations for how I wanted things to be between us, how I wanted them to respond, their situation, my feelings, and I was amazed at first on how much it worked. Now I know that it works, and it doesn't matter how damaged you think the relationship is, gratitude will change it for the better. What we are grateful for we get more of.

It's the same way with money. If we dwell and act from a place of lack, then we will attract more lack. When we say that we are grateful to be one with a tremendous amount of money even  when there's no money in the bank, money will begin to pour in, it will find us. When we say that I am grateful that money flows to me in avalanches of abundance, money will began to flow to us in abundance. When we say that I live an abundant life and I am grateful, I am grateful that I have more than enough to meet my needs and help others, this will be true in our experience. Abundance is waiting on us, it's been here. As we continue to repeat these affirmations, they will become engrained in our mind, and they will become automatic responses, we will believe them in our heart. 

Gratitude keeps the low energies away, it keeps them from overpowering us, and bringing us into a pessimist mood, a mood that turns into a personality. It keeps our vibration high and high vibrational occurrences happening in our lives. It brings about pleasant experiences, and we begin to ignore the things that don't matter. Because when we bring our attention to anything, and talk about it, we give it power, and it grows and grows. 

If you want anything to grow, just put your focus on it, water it with gratitude, and watch it flourish. It can be something that seems impossible, but with gratitude everything is possible. When you feel like you are under attack, you aren't feeling your best, and you are trying to fend undesired things off, use gratitude. 

Gratitude is your best defense, because defense is the best offense. 

I am sooo grateful for you, thank you for reading!

Love, 

Quel 

​I'll holla

Raquel Givens Jones

Blogger, author, poet