In college, I purchased a book entitled 14,000 Things to Be Happy About
As a therapist, I’ve spent a significant amount of time with families who are discouraged. One of my favorite questions to ask is, “What’s going well?” I like this question because everyone I have ever met, no matter how bleak the circumstances, has something to be thankful for. The trick is to find it. Momentum builds quickly, and the mood in the room lifts when someone realizes just how many positive things they have going for them.
Jumpstarting Happiness
Finding positives in our life, thanking God for them, and making these things the center of our attention is a great way to jumpstart our own happiness. Philippians 4:8 says, “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
The more you and I focus on God’s blessings, the more our faith in Him grows! This post contains 101 things that I am thankful for. I’m certain that you and I have much in common and that you will be thankful for many of these things too. You can use this list to jump-start your happiness when you are stuck in a rut and add additional things that you are thankful for in the comments at the end.
The more we practice gratefulness, the more our gratitude grows. Most of the items listed are simple pleasures of life. For fun, I’ve included relevant Scriptures and the occasional side note too. Because of who Jesus is, you and I always have a reason to be thankful!
101 Things to be Thankful For:
- Salvation through Jesus Christ.
- 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
- Forgiveness.
- Psalm 103:2 As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
- God’s grace.
- 2 Corinthians 12:9 My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.
- Being loved by God.
- John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son
- Being a child of God.
- 1 John 3:1 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God
- Family.
- Friends.
- God’s word.
- The hope of heaven.
- Laughter.
- Children.
- The freedom to laugh at ourselves.
- Hiking.
- Clean water.
- An incredible wife who loves me.
- A good book.
- Shoes.
- A home.
- The sun shining.
- The rain falling.
- The chill of winter.
- The beach.
- Access to good medicine when I’m sick.
- Wise and knowledgeable doctors when my children are sick.
- Toothpaste.
- Blogging friends who cheer me on.
- Ocean waves.
- Strong coffee.
- The smell of freshly brewed coffee in the morning.
- Trail-mix.
- Sriracha Sauce–Because it makes everything taste better.
- My smartphone.
- A car.
- Mt. biking.
- The feeling I get when I walk through the door and hear all three of my children squeal, “Daddy’s home!”
- Camping.
- Pick-nicks in the park.
- My job.
- Church.
- Worship.
- My blended family–In case you haven’t heard, I strongly believe that God loves blended families!
- You can read a post I wrote about this here: God Loves Blended Families
- A bed to sleep in.
- Watching my one-year-old daughter swing.
- Christmas.
- Christmas cards.
- The many freedoms that come with living in the United States.
- Fresh-picked apples.
- Orange-juice.
- A college education.
- The privileged of teaching others.
- Friends with the gift of sarcasm, who help me laugh at some of the ridiculous messes I get myself into.
- Color–I remember reading The Giver in high school and thinking about how dreary a world without color would be.
- Flip-flops.
- Hoodie sweaters.
- Blue Jeans.
- Early morning writing times.
- Sunset walks on the beach.
- Bare feet in the sand.
- Ocean waves.
- Readers who are kind enough to share my writing.
- WordPress–I hear it’s much more user-friendly than previous blogging tools.
- Weekends.
- Saturday pancakes.
- Cooking with my daughters.
- Blog link-ups, and the many new friends that I have made through them this year.
- You can find a list of the link-ups that I enjoy following and participating in here: Link-ups
- A working kitchen sink–Ours went out a few weeks ago. It’s one of those simple pleasures that I forgot mattered until it broke. I’m incredibly grateful that ours is working again 🙂
- Plumbers.
- Indoor plumbing.
- Electricians.
- Pediatricians.
- Snow.
- Snowball fights with my kids.
- Watching my girls make snow angels.
- Grocery stores.
- Second chances.
- Bonfires.
- Ice cream on a hot day.
- Hot chocolate on cold days.
- Spell-check.
- Good friends, who help me out, when spell-check doesn’t quite do its job–Thanks, Erik!
- Pic-Monkey and Canva for free and easy photo editing.
- Hand sanitizer.
- Disposable diapers.
- Air-tight diaper pails.
- Other mommies and daddies who understand.
- Hot showers.
- Pandora: George Winston, Jeremy Camp, and Nickleback are among my favorite playlists.
- Coffee to-go mugs.
- Sunglasses.
- The smell of clean laundry.
- The feel of freshly washed bedsheets.
- Soft pillows.
- A warm comforter.
- A backyard for our kids to play in.
- Swings.
- Slides.
- Sky-diving–It’s been a long time, but it’s also among my favorite memories!
- People who review my books and say nice things.
- Jenny’s sense of humor and willingness to laugh with me during our crazy, blended family adventures.
- Nights when Addison sleeps until morning.
- You!–Yes, I’m honored that you are reading this post right now. I love to write and love it when people read what I write. So thank you for being here. It really does brighten my day!
Writing out 101 things I’m thankful for was more difficult than I expected. Gratitude, like a muscle, grows with use. It’s likely that I need to exercise my thankfulness more often. How about you. What are you thankful for, and what would you add to this list? Have you ever been down and honed in on things you are thankful for as a way of rebuilding momentum? I look forward to continuing our conversation in the comments below!
Help Us Keep the Happiness Content Comming
Jen and I are thrilled you stopped by! Kind words and coffee fuel this blog. If you enjoyed our thoughts on how to be thankful, help us keep this great content coming. Let us know what happy marriage tips you would add to this list. Or partner with us by using the buy us a coffee button to help fuel our next project. To dive even deeper, you can also check out our happy marriage books and resources for couples. We honestly couldn’t do this without you!
Great list! #88 has to be one of my favorites! 🙂 On the serious side, though, we just discussed in our women’s Bible study that grace inspires gratitude: when we see or receive grace, we should feel grateful. Thank you for this practical and inspiring list…stopping by from The Art of Home-Making Mondays!
Thanks Elizabeth,
#88 is one of my favorites too–especially on those busy days when I drop the kiddos of at school and head straight in to work. I love your thoughts about how grace can and should inspire gratitude. Thanks for stopping by 🙂
First of all, thank you for linking up over at #InspireMeMonday :). I enjoyed your list–my husband and you agree on the Sriracha sauce. We enjoy mountain biking as well. I can tell you’re acquainted with Michael Hyatt and his Platform University–I’ve been eyeing the Get Noticed Theme–how do you like it? It sounds like you’re new to WordPress as well.
Thanks Anita,
Yes, Michael Hyatt is great! I’ve picked up a ton of excellent blogging wisdom from his books, podcast, and from Platform-U. The Get Noticed Theme is awesome. It took me a few months to figure out how to customize everything and get a look I loved, but over all, it’s easy to use, the tech-support is incredible, and I like the fact that there are so many unique features. Thanks for stopping by 🙂
What an enjoyable post! It is so true, we all have something we can be thankful for. At times, we just need to take the time to look for it. And then be thankful! Glad we were neighbors at Inspire Me Monday this morning!
Hey Joanne,
Thanks for stopping by. I love Inspire Me Monday, and am glad we were neighbor’s there too.
This is a great list Jed. I was reading up on praying with a 2 year old and ran across an interesting story about how the parents eyes were opened up to what a child sees. The child would list the each individual toy, their nose, eyes and many other things that we normally overlook and take for granted. Though we forget that we are guest in a foreign land that have been charged with its care. We should be thankful for the opportunity and the work we have been given.
When I do this exercise daily I also try to dig down deep. I actually write three things out I’m thankful for. Who helped me? Why this happened? What this means to me? How can I replicate this? How did I contribute?
This little exercise has also helped me in my relationships because not only am I thankful but it allows me to express why I’m thankful, so that people really understand their contributions and how they helped me.
Hey Kirby,
That sounds like an excellent book your reading. I agree, there is something incredible that happens when I spend time with my children, and get a gimps of our world thought their eyes.
I love that line about being in a foreign land and being charged with it’s care too. Not only is it true, it’s also a good reason to approach life with a since of awe and gratitude. Thanks for adding this in!
I have seasons where I keep a gratitude journal, and it’s always very uplifting. Thanks for sharing your list of 101 things. We each have SO much to be thankful for if we’ll just take the time to notice.
Such a great list! I agree with you on so many–and I am also a Sriracha lover. I also agree that God loves blended families. I have a daughter from a previous marriage, and my husband and I have 4 other children, and I am so thankful that he loves my daughter the same way he loves all of the kids that are technically “his”.
Great post, thanks for sharing.
Hey Miranda,
It’s great to connect with another blended family, and a fellow Srirach lover. Thanks for joining in the conversation!
That shift in perspective and focus can be so life-saving. Thanks for linking, Jed.
Gratitude is so vital to true joy and happiness. Thanks for sharing this great list!
Counting our blessings and finding things to be thankful for is the way I want to live. And most likely the most joyful one too. Great post, thank you. Blessings upon blessings!
Wow! What a fun list! SO much to be thankful even silly things like soft pillows! Thank you Jesus!
I love this idea of writing it all down – reasons to be thankful. Thanks for that reminder today.
This is an exercise that practice daily…especially during the times when I feel down or am going through a difficult circumstance. Philippians 4:8 is my “go-to” verse for just such times! When we focus on God and all things good, our troubles start to shrink in size.
I loved your list 🙂
Blessings, Joan
haha! Trail mix! You’re right! What a great list and it’s always a great way to get in better spirits! I’m amazed at how rich we truly are when i take the time to count my blessings!
So true there are many things to be thankful for each day! Love your list! Made me smile when I read trail mix and flip flops!
Thanks Samantha,
Those are two of my favorite 🙂
Being thankful is so important for our mental health. This is a great list.
Wonderful list! The possibilities are endless when it comes to thankfulness in our lives… for me, this morning, the sun peaking through dots of clouds and filling the sky with a gorgeous pink color as I drove the kids to school in my heated car. 😉
I love your list. This is such a great reminder to count our blessings and name them – there is so much power in writing and giving thanks! This was a blessing to me this morning! Thank you!
I am always happy to see people who are grateful because I think we have become a nation of complainers
Love it. There are SO many things, people, and circumstances we can be thankful for. Great list! I second Strong Coffee.:)
When I take time to make lists like this I tend to dig down deeper, too. I also like to keep my list around for when circumstances are hard and I find myself in a season of ick.
This practice of actually acknowledging what we are blessed to have received is such an important aspect of our faith journey. For if we lose our gratitude for the small how can we ever be thankful for more and bigger? 🙂
Wonderful post!
Love the name of your blog and this list! What a great exercise to do as a reminder of how blessed we are!
Cathy
The analogy of using gratitude like muscle is a good one, Jed. It does take time and use – and pushing self – to promote strong, healthy gratitude. Honestly, I’m probably in the earlier stages, but well into the workout. Your list is good encouragement to dig in and do a few more gratitude push-ups. Thanks for sharing it with us. #intentionalTuesday
Thanks Kristi,
Starting out, I thought that creating a list of 100+ things I’m thankful for would be easy. It took me a lot more energy and effort than I thought it would, and made me realize how I need to be intentional about growing in this area. I’ll be doing my gratitude push-ups this week too 🙂
Your blog is such a welcoming place! Dunno if it has ANYthing to do with our kindred love for coffee (and the Lord, of course…)
But seriously, I LOVE this list! Gratitude is such an important characteristic to practice – and yes, it does take practice for many of us. But, oh, the benefits! I started to note which ones in your list resonated with me and decided not to – far, far too many!! LOL
Thank you so very much for sharing this at Coffee & Conversation 🙂
That’s awesome! It’s always a pleasure to have friends who are passionate about Jesus and coffee nearby. I love the name of your link-up, and appreciate the opportunity to share and connect each week. Thanks for hosting it!
Love it! There are so many things to be thankful for, Jed!
I tweeted out a little love.
Found your post on While I’m Waiting today.
Hope you have a good one!
Melanie
Thanks Melanie,
I appreciate you sharing and the words of encouragement 🙂
I love your list!!! And, couldn’t we just go on and on? As I’ve grown more ill, I’ve also grown more thankful for the little things. I guess I have more time to think about little things, now. Thanks for sharing this wonderful post with us at Together on Tuesdays 🙂
List posted. Week brightened. Thanks for the needed lift !!
Skydiving?? who knew?
Thanks David
Yep, three tandem jumps and one on my own. It was a long time ago, but these are still some very happy memories 🙂
What a great list!
I love your list Jed! My mother-in-law bought one of the books on my Christmas wish list this year… 1000 gifts. Your post reminded me a lot of it. Thankfulness is so wonderful and really draws us closer to God. I started tweeting out my 1000 gifts but stopped when life got chaotic. I’m going to get back on track.
By the way, blog link-up hosts, like me, are thankful for wonderful blogging friends like you who participate every week in our communities.
Thanks for sharing (and for linking up to the #SHINEbloghop).
Wishing you a lovely day.
This is awesome. There are so many little things that we take for granted like when the power goes out and we reach to turn the light switch on.
This is great having a thankful heart keeps us focused on Gods goodness and blessings. I live in 54 &55.
Your list is fantastic, and it is difficult to select only one favorite, but if you have even lived where there is no indoor plumbing – – you would chose 68. An attitude of gratitude is spiritually and physically healthy. Being thankful for the little things in life are reasons to rejoice. Thank you for sharing with us here at Tell me a Story.
One thing I’m very thankful for was the privilege to read this very encouraging post, especially on a day like this. A cold winter day, no electricity, and I’ve got the cold. A day like this reminds you that electricity is a gift to be thankful for. I’m also thankful you found TGI Saturdays, because I’m really honored to have you join our family.
This post made me smile, thank you.
I really enjoy reading your posts. You have some gramatical errors in this one, so have someone proof read for you. Nevertheless, love your work anyway. Blessings to u and your wonderful family.
There are so many good things on this list. You are so right, we have so much to be thankful for! Thank you for sharing at the #weekendwhispers link up!
Thank you for the list on what to be thankful for. I needed this reminder…especially since I have a little one who is sick and won’t stop crying plus I’m on to exhaustion mode. I needed this perspective!
This is a fabulous list!! Thanks so much for sharing these great things to be thankful for always and thank you for sharing this with us at the Grace & Truth link-up!