Religious Life

100 Daily Blessings – Add to the List!

The rabbis tell us that we need to say 100 blessings a day. This would easily be achieved if you prayed Shacharit, Mincha, Ma’ariv and all prayers required throughout the day around meals and more. But if you don’t daven out of a siddur three times a day, it doesn’t mean you can’t say your own. How might our lives change if we really did say 100 blessings each day – formal ones or those from our hearts? In times of difficulty it is often harder to find blessings, and, all the more important. Blessings are about seeing the good…even when it’s hard. So let’s try. Here are 50 of mine. What are yours?

WE ARE PERSONALLY BLESSED EVERY DAY – MAY WE NOTICE

Blessed are You who has given me the gift of this day

Blessed are You for breathing life in to me each day.

Blessed are You who helps me realize all that I have.

Blessed are You who instills my life with meaning.

Blessed are You for the sleep that rejuvenates my body and my soul.       

Blessed are You for my senses – I touch, I hear, I feel, I taste, I smell.

Blessed are You for tears that cleanse my soul.

Blessed are You for making my soul pure each day; reminding me of possibilities.7

Blessed are You for every minute more of life.

Blessed are You for guiding my steps.

Blessed are You for clothing me with my me-ness.

Blessed are You for making me part of the creative process of this world.

WE ARE BLESSED BY ALL THAT IS IN THE WORLD – MAY WE NOTICE

Blessed are You for creating the world.

Blessed are You who brings forth the sun, rain and snow to nurture my life.

Blessed are You who creates sunrises and sunsets that takes my breath away.

Blessed are You for the rainbows that are wondrous and remind me of Your covenant.

Blessed are You who fills me with awe through majesty of mountains, valleys, seas, oceans.

Blessed are You who created animals that make me laugh and give me love.

Blessed are You for the cycles of time that allow me to refocus each year/month/week/day.

Blessed are You for silence that allows me to hear the air.

Blessed are You for those who harvest and produce the food I eat.

Blessed are You water that nourishes, hydrates, and keeps me alive.

Blessed are You for the “ah-ha” moments in my life.

Blessed are You for helping me notice the little things that could be the beginning of everything.

Blessed are You for giving me a potentially loving, open heart.

Blessed are You for “waking me up,” so I may really see all that is around me.

WE ARE BLESSED IN OUR RELATIONSHIPS WITH OTHERS – MAY WE NOTICE

Blessed are You for all who came before me – paving a path for my family and loved ones.

Blessed are You for the gift of my memories.

Blessed are You for helping me see God in everyone I encounter.

Blessed are You for the gift of those who help me in times of distress and need.

Blessed are You for putting Yourself in every face I see.

Blessed are You for all the handprints on my heart.

Blessed are You for the gift of listening and Your help in my developing the muscle to use it.

Blessed are You for the gift of self-compassion and the ability for me to exercise it regularly.

Blessed are You for putting my greatest teachers in front of me disguised as difficult people.

Blessed are You for helping me remember to give others the benefit of the doubt.

WE ARE BLESSED WITH GIFTS THAT ARE BESTOWED UPON US – MAY WE NOTICE

Blessed are You for the gift of my uniqueness. May I celebrate it today.

Blessed are You for the gift of knowledge and wisdom and guiding me in using both.

Blessed are You for helping me see that I am a holy soul.

Blessed are You for reminding me to separate that which is holy from that which is ordinary.

Blessed are You for perseverance to help me keep trying.

Blessed are You for unconditional love that allows me to lay back and let go.

Blessed are You for my failures that help me to grow.

Blessed are You for giving me a beginner’s mind so I can be curious and always learning.

Blessed are You for giving me choice and helping me use it wisely.

Blessed are You for the gift of discernment so I may see what is true at every moment.

Blessed are You for giving me the courage to do what is right and what is hard.

Blessed are You for the giving me the strength to invite my negative feelings in for tea.

Blessed are You for giving me enough. Help me to know it.

Blessed are You for giving me the strength to face whatever is before me today.