Philippians 4:4-7

⁴ Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! ⁵ Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. ⁶ Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

In the video below, I talk with Rev. Bill Ellis about a variety of topics meant to encourage listeners in exploring the power of non-anxious presence. Chief among them is preemptive gratitude.

The words “Thank you” are some of the most transformative words in any language. When we say, “Thank You”, we are acknowledging the presence of a positive and fruitful relationship between ourselves and the being toward whom our gratitude is extended. In the instance I share in this video, I refer to the power of taking God in any and every circumstance. Even though I don’t always remember to say “Thank You” even for the things that appear in my life that I would never consciously choose, when I do, I can instantly feel my mind reaching for a higher awareness. As I’m writing this, I just thanked God for my post Covid vaccine body aches. Am I saying, “Thank You” because I think it’s awesome to have an achy body. No. But in saying these words, I am reminding myself that God is present in every experience and all I have to do connect to that awareness is to give up the false belief that I know what anything is for and say, “Thank You”.