Thankfulness: A Key Ingredient to Wellness

Don’t you love it when science and medicine catch up with the Bible? Scripture has long told us that people who give thanks and praise to God enjoy better mental and physical health. And now, clinical research confirms it: there’s a powerful connection between a healthy body and a healthy spirit. 

Psalm 103: 1-5 (NIV) says:  
 
Praise the Lord, my soul; 
    all my inmost being, praise his holy name. 
Praise the Lord, my soul, 
    and forget not all his benefits— 
who forgives all your sins 
    and heals all your diseases, 
who redeems your life from the pit 
    and crowns you with love and compassion, 
who satisfies your desires with good things 
    so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. 

I‘ve been meditating on this Psalm all month. What sparked my interest is the phrase in verse 2: “Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits,” and the connection to verse five, “who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”  

Gratitude Enhances Health 

 
As I dug deeper, I found numerous scientific studies confirming that gratitude can significantly improve your health. It’s clinically proven! A 2015 study published by the American Psychological Association revealed that heart patients with a positive and thankful outlook had much better outcomes than those who didn’t. 
 
In fact, there’s conclusive scientific evidence that thankfulness leads to happiness. Happy people live up to ten years longer than unhappy ones, and optimists have a 77% lower risk of heart disease than pessimists. Those percentages are astonishing. A study from Harvard School of Medicine lists additional benefits. 

Clinical Psychologist and Columbia University professor Erin Olivo, author of Wise Mind Living: Master Your Emotions, Transform Your Life, explains:  

"The people for whom gratitude is more of a trait than a state, we see that those people tend to be healthier. They tend to be happier. They have stronger social connections and stronger relationships. There’s some evidence that people who are more optimistic or have a grateful attitude have higher immune functioning."  

And that’s not all. Other studies show that grateful people also have more energy, more friends, and less depression, envy, and greed.  

Making it Practical 

 
Gratitude isn’t just for Thanksgiving season; it’s a daily practice. Verse 2 of the Psalm above reminds us to “Forget not all His benefits.” But let’s be honest: gratefulness doesn’t always come naturally. It’s something we have to train ourselves to do. Here are a few simple ways to get started: 

• 1. Write it down:

  Listing what we’re thankful for helps us remember God’s blessings. Just the very act of putting pen to paper cements gratitude in my heart. Keeping a thankfulness journal might be exactly what you need to boost your health, clear your mind, and find mental rest. Research shows that writing down what you're thankful for can lead to a host of wellness benefits.   

• 2. Use Your Words:

  My son Mark took a while to speak. He really did not have any need for words because his older siblings spoke for him. Eventually, his pointing and funny sign language weren’t enough. I began encouraging him to “use your words.” He might have been thinking “thank you,” but he needed to learn to say it out loud. And so do we. 
•  
• Just the other day, I stopped a stranger in the restaurant wearing a “Vietnam Veteran” hat. My dad served two tours in Vietnam and didn’t receive much of a thank you when he returned. I took a moment to thank this gentleman for his service to our country. I could tell it surprised and blessed him, and it took very little effort. Don’t let your words or grateful thoughts go unspoken for another minute. Call that friend. Write that letter. Words have the power to bring hope, but you have to use them. 

• 3. Choose Gratefulness:

  We have more control over our thoughts than many of us realize. Even in hard times, we can find a reason to be thankful.  Gratitude is a decision, not just a feeling. I have a longtime pastor’s wife friend who’s always smiling. Someone once asked her, “Why are you always smiling?” 
•  
• Her answer? “Because I decided to.”  

• Application of Gratitude: Practice Gratitude in the Carpool Line 

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That same APA-published study found that grateful people tend to earn more money, sleep better, adhere to exercise routines, and are less likely to get infections. Another fascinating study from the Journal of Happiness Studies said this is also true for children and adolescents. Researchers surveyed 1,035 high school students and found that the most thankful teenagers had more friends and higher GPAs. The opposite was true of those with materialistic values -- less life satisfaction, and higher levels of envy and jealousy. 

Now that‘s a compelling reason to ask your kids to name one thing they’re grateful for before they hop out of the car to go into school each morning. 

Train Your Heart Through Prayer 

 
I Thessalonians 5:18 (NIV) says, “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” It’s not easy to give thanks during hardship, but the more we practice giving thanks in the good times, it will certainly come more naturally in the hard times. Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord. Thank you.  

Thankful in All Things 

 
Gratitude isn’t just a mindset; it shows up in the choices we make every day. Even small conveniences can be a gift. If you or a loved one feel under the weather this holiday season, telehealth is a modern blessing we can be grateful for. If you’re worried your child has strep throat or needs treatment for an ear infection, Medi-Share’s telehealth provider can save you time and money, and you may find yourself saying “thank you” for the opportunity to skip the germ-infested waiting room.  

I pray we can all have a healthier, happier Thanksgiving this year by choosing to focus on friends and family, and less on the frenzy. Take time to express genuine gratitude to the Lord. The health benefits are just a bonus!  

Proverbs 17:22 (NLT) says it best: “A cheerful heart is good medicine ... ”