{"id":358,"date":"2016-11-07T15:53:01","date_gmt":"2016-11-07T15:53:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/yourmorningcupofinspiration\/?p=358"},"modified":"2017-02-25T17:23:53","modified_gmt":"2017-02-25T17:23:53","slug":"identifying-your-blessings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/yourmorningcupofinspiration\/2016\/11\/identifying-your-blessings.html","title":{"rendered":"Life May Not Be Perfect, But You Are Still Blessed"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"water-lilies-bud-pond-green-99548<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cDo not indulge in dreams of having what you have not, but reckon up the chief of the blessings you do possess, and then thankfully remember how you would crave for them if they were not yours.\u201d \u2013 Marcus Aurelius<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The Aurelius quote is a challenge for each of us to understand how truly blessed we are. It is easy to identify what is imperfect in our lives.\u00a0 And it is natural to want to improve our circumstances.\u00a0 But in the pursuit of improvement, we can fail to appreciate what we already have.<\/p>\n

That is why it is useful to take up Aurelius\u2019 challenge to consider what we would crave if it was gone. For instance, your house may not be perfect, but how would you feel if you didn\u2019t have it at all?\u00a0 Your child may give you a headache from time to time, but how would you feel if you never saw that child again?<\/p>\n

Another way to look at it is this: Visualize yourself in an empty room.\u00a0 You have nothing and no one.\u00a0 Who would you yearn to see again?\u00a0 Who would you want back in your life?\u00a0 Many of our relationships are obligatory.\u00a0 In my own life, I deal with some people out of obligation, and then there are others who I truly want to spend time with.\u00a0 When you ask yourself \u201cWho would I yearn to see again?\u201d your answer tells you which people you really want in your life, versus those who are superfluous.<\/p>\n

The same holds true for our possessions. Which of your possessions would you crave<\/em> to have again?\u00a0 Many of us amass possessions for quantity.\u00a0 We have more clothes than we can possibly wear.\u00a0 We have more dishes and pots and pans than we can regularly use.\u00a0 And we don\u2019t love most of what we have.\u00a0 But if we consider which possessions we would want to have back (if we could only have some of them) that gives clarity as to what we really need and value.<\/p>\n

When we think about all the people and things that we would crave if they were gone, we realize how truly blessed we are. If my husband and daughter were gone, I would desperately yearn to see them again.\u00a0 Theirs is a vacancy that could not be filled.\u00a0 If my house or my car disappeared, I would be very sad indeed.\u00a0 Neither is perfect, but both provide me with comfort and protection.<\/p>\n

I could live without most of my clothes and other possessions, but there are a few sentimental items that I would want to have again. For instance, my aunt gave me a children\u2019s bible when I was very small.\u00a0 I must have looked at the pictures in that Bible over a thousand times.\u00a0 Its binding is worn from use.\u00a0 It sits on a shelf in my office and is a reminder that I once was small, unworldly and wholly dependent on the kindness of others.<\/p>\n

This week, consider what you would crave if it were gone. Consider how blessed you are to have certain people and things in your life.\u00a0 Yes, your life may not be perfect.\u00a0 And yes, you may be working to change certain things for the better.\u00a0 But that doesn\u2019t mean you aren\u2019t incredibly blessed today. <\/em><\/p>\n

(Photo Courtesy of Pexels)<\/p>\n

Follow me at https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/yourmorningcupofinspiration\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cDo not indulge in dreams of having what you have not, but reckon up the chief of the blessings you do possess, and then thankfully remember how you would crave for them if they were not yours.\u201d \u2013 Marcus Aurelius The Aurelius quote is a challenge for each of us to understand how truly blessed…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":593,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[7],"class_list":["post-358","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-blessings"],"yoast_head":"\nLife May Not Be Perfect, But You Are Still Blessed - Your Morning Cup of Inspiration<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/yourmorningcupofinspiration\/2016\/11\/identifying-your-blessings.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Life May Not Be Perfect, But You Are Still Blessed - 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