The monthly review of graces: rereading what God has done
A month goes by quickly, and memory is selective. We remember the worries, the deadlines, the annoyances. The graces we received dissolve. This monthly quest invites you to a gratitude exercise broader than the others: reread your month and write down everything God has done, even what seems small.
What it looks like in your day
Set aside thirty minutes. At the end of the month, a quiet moment, with your notebook and a pen.
Use memory aids. Your calendar, your photos, your messages, your notes. They help you recall what happened.
Reread the month in four steps:
- The events. Go through it week by week: what good things happened? Successful meetings, encounters, celebrations, services given or received.
- The people. Who was a gift? Who helped you, encouraged you, put up with you?
- The hard stretches. What did you go through? How were you carried? What was hard can hold graces: an unexpected strength, some support, a lesson.
- God's answers. Answered prayers, signs, verses, moments of peace.
Write without sorting. Don't limit yourself to the big things. Small ones count: a meal, a peaceful commute, a smile.
Give thanks aloud. Reread your list, saying: "Thank you for..."
Keep a record. Each month, add your page. After a year, you will have twelve pages of graces: a treasure.
Share. Read one or two lines to your spouse, to a friend.
If you are in a hurry, twenty minutes is enough with your calendar. If you are shy, everything stays private. If your month was hard, that is when the exercise is most useful.
What the Bible says
Psalm 116 asks a question that opens the review:
“What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me?”
"What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me?": the psalmist knows he has received much. He begins by counting them. Psalm 103 is a review in the form of a song (Psalms 103:2): "forget not all his benefits." And the book of Lamentations reminds us that God's compassions are new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23): a month is made of thirty renewed mornings.
The book of Ezra, for its part, records the graces of a long and difficult journey home, where the hand of God was upon the travelers (Ezra 8:31). Reviews are part of the biblical way of remembering.
Pitfalls to avoid
Forgetting hidden graces. Some blessings are visible only afterward: a closed door that protected you, a trial that shaped you.
Doing a performance review. It is not about what you achieved, but about what you received. Keep your eyes on the gifts.
Getting discouraged by a poor month. Even a hard month contains graces. Look for them.
Doing the review without prayer. Writing alone can turn into an exercise in self-satisfaction. End by giving thanks.
Staying alone. Telling a loved one what you wrote down multiplies the gratitude.
This month, set aside thirty minutes. Reread your month and write down everything God has done.