What burdens do you carry on your shoulders each day? Burdens are weighty, and they can consume us if we don’t balance them with blessings.
What blessings do you experience each day? Blessings are light-hearted, free-spirited, and they can immerse you into a life of love, appreciation, hope, faith and joy.
Today I challenge you to let your creative juices flow with this DIY Blessings Jar. Learn to dwell on the blessings {not the burdens!} and cultivate a spirit of thankfulness.
♥ BASE: Jar, Tin, Box, Empty Bottle, etc.
♥ DECORATIONS: Flowers, Pearls, Label, Stickers, Wool, Ribbon, Buttons, etc.
♥ BLESSING PAPER: Coloured paper, Scrapbook sheets, Post-it notes
Steps:
STEP 1.
Choose a BASE, and get crafty with whatever DECORATIONS you have gathered.
STEP 2.
Count your blessings throughout the day! Use your choice of BLESSING PAPER to scrawl down a couple words of the blessings you encounter. You might want to write the date somewhere on your BLESSING PAPER, so that in the future you can reminisce on that blessing and the point in which it touched your life.
STEP 3.
Get creative with your blessings: don’t be limited by a piece of paper! Perhaps there is a movie ticket, a leaf, flower, photo, or picture that you feel blessed by. These count as reminders of your blessings too!
STEP 4.
Place your Blessings Jar somewhere where you will encounter it daily {so perhaps don’t shove it in the back of the cupboard!}.
STEP 5.
Empty your Blessings Jar when needed, and read through each blessing when feeling down, or in need of a reminder that YOU ARE BLESSED.
Why introduce a new daily habit to your already busy routine?
Why go to the effort of naming each blessing?
At times we can all let our burdens get us down. We then begin to lose perspective, and can’t see any form of blessings working in our lives. We compare ourselves to others, and wonder why we weren’t as blessed as them.
When we get to this point, we need to challenge ourselves by breaking down the walls and barriers of burden we have built. We need to breakthrough to the blessings. We can create new habits to stand us in good stead. A Blessings Jar is one good habit you might want to try. Start looking out for the blessings in each day!
Blessing (n.) refers to God’s favour and protection, answers to prayers, something for which you are grateful.
On the other hand, a Burden (n.) is a heavy load, something which causes worry, hardship, distress.
So instead of picking out the things from your day which made you upset, left you disappointed, caused you to get angry, or made you feel worthless, pick out the abundance of lovely things that brightened your day.
♥ A handwritten letter, card, note
♥ A text message or phone call
♥ A smile from a stranger
♥ A compliment from a friend
♥ An answered prayer
♥ A scripture verse
♥ A quote that means something to you, or touched you in your circumstance
♥ A promise or truth
♥ An individual who has helped, supported, or encouraged you
You will learn to recognise the blessings in your life as you begin to reflect on your day and the moments that stood out from the rest. I’d like to leave you with the words from an old hymn named Count Your Blessings. These words capture the purpose of the Blessing Jar: a reminder that God is working in our lives!
