By Doug Bing, North Pacific Union Conference president
A study by UCLA details the benefits of being thankful, saying thank you and practicing gratitude in general. The practice of gratitude is an important one. In one research study, it was found that practicing gratitude for 15 minutes a day, five days a week, for at least six weeks enhances mental health and can bring about a change in perspective.
There are health benefits to being grateful as well. Seventy different studies have been conducted, and they all point to gratitude and thankfulness as factors in reducing depression. Gratitude leads to greater satisfaction with life and stronger relationships. It lessens anxiety and supports heart health, along with relieving stress. This is just a snapshot of the benefits of being thankful and practicing gratitude.
As I write this, I am filled with gratitude and thankfulness for the Washington Conference family. Twenty-five years ago this month, the Washington Conference family welcomed my family to this conference. We were a family of five, along with a dog and a cat, moving here from the flatlands of Kansas. We arrived on a day when Washington natives were complaining about the 85-degree heat. We had left Kansas when it was 105 degrees, so we thought 85 seemed just perfect.
I am thankful for each school and each teacher who welcomed our children into their classrooms. I am thankful for church communities that have been a joy to visit from week to week. I am thankful for the church that embraced our children. Our family has changed in the last 25 years. Each of our children has graduated from college and graduate school. They have married and have careers. We now have grandchildren as well.
Thank you for these twenty-five years. I am grateful.
As of this reading, I have now accepted a position with the North Pacific Union Conference. So while I will still be living in Washington and retain church membership in the Washington Conference, I have changed roles. With gratitude and thanksgiving, I am signing off from this blog.
Let us all practice gratitude and thankfulness each day. Most of all, be thankful daily for all that God has done and is doing in your life!