Choosing Gratitude
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What does it mean to choose gratitude when life does not turn out the way you planned?
In Choosing Gratitude, Dennis R. Atwood invites readers on a deeply personal and profoundly hopeful journey—one forged in the crucible of pastoral ministry, congregational life, and a life-altering diagnosis of early-onset Parkinson’s disease. Written with pastoral warmth and honest vulnerability, this book speaks to everyday believers navigating disappointment, anxiety, loss, and uncertainty.
Atwood does not offer shallow optimism or “toxic positivity.” Instead, he explores gratitude as a deliberate spiritual practice—one that begins within the heart but ultimately transforms communities. Drawing from Scripture, personal stories, and over thirty years of ministry experience, he shows how gratitude is not denial of hardship but a faithful response to it.
The book unfolds in two movements.
In Part One, Atwood lays the spiritual foundation for gratitude. Through biblical reflections on passages such as Psalm 95 and Matthew 6, he addresses anxiety, disappointment, and the daily grind of life. With candor, he shares his own struggle to “choose gratitude” after stepping down from pastoral ministry due to Parkinson’s.
These meditations help readers cultivate an inward transformation—learning to trust God in uncertain seasons and to see life through the lens of thanksgiving rather than fear.
But gratitude, Atwood insists, cannot remain private.
In Part Two, he tells the compelling story of “The Gratitude Project,” an innovative ministry initiative that empowered a small congregation in rural North Carolina to invest boldly in its community. With limited resources but abundant faith, this church reimagined its purpose, leveraged its assets, and made a tangible impact among the most vulnerable. The result was not only community transformation but congregational renewal.
Choosing Gratitude is ideal for individual devotion, small groups, church-wide studies, book clubs, and community organizations. Each chapter includes reflection and action questions designed to spark conversation and practical engagement. Congregations will find in these pages a hopeful framework for rediscovering their mission in a time when many churches feel anxious, divided, or uncertain about the future.
At a time when negativity and fear dominate headlines and social media, Atwood calls the church back to its essential identity: people who trust in God’s abundance rather than scarcity; people who express gratitude through generosity; people who become the hands and feet of Christ in their neighborhoods.
This book is not about building bigger churches. It is about becoming better reflections of God’s love.
Honest, biblical, and inspiring, Choosing Gratitude challenges readers to adopt gratitude as a daily posture—and to let that gratitude overflow into acts of justice, mercy, and compassion.
In everything, give thanks.
And watch what God can do.
What Readers are Saying About Choosing Gratitude:
With great sensitivity forged through deep engagement with Scripture, three decades of faithful pastoral ministry, and the challenges of Parkinson's disease, author Dennis Atwood prods and guides individuals and congregations toward renewal through the practice of gratitude. Choosing Gratitude is an inspiring, informative, and practical guide for individuals and congregations who yearn for vitality amid personal and communal challenges.
Bishop Kenneth L. Carder, Duke Divinity School
Once you read Choosing Gratitude, you will find yourself grateful you did. The author’s theological insights are significant and compelling, the story of The Gratitude Project is inspiring, but it is his personal story that moved me to tears and caused me to do some needed self-reflection. Adopting an attitude of gratitude is an easy moralism, but an enormous effort of faith and relentless discipline. In these pages, you will find hope and help for your journey toward your own gratitude project. I can't recommend your reading this book strongly enough. You'll be grateful that you did.
Bill Wilson, The Center for Healthy Churches
Rev. Dennis Atwood invites the reader to journey with him as he describes his own battle with early-onset Parkinson’s while remaining committed to living a life of gratitude. Atwood reminds us that gratitude begins with God, then flows out from you and me as a gift, in which the giver should expect nothing in return. Through Scripture, reflection questions, and teaching churches how to do a “gratitude investment,” this book is a powerful stewardship and missional resource.
Jessie Squires Colwell, Virginia Conference, United Methodist Church
As Dennis Atwood notes, gratitude is a choice, but he clearly demonstrates that it may not be an easy one. In bravely sharing his own journey, he encourages us to pursue a path toward gratitude. And that path cannot be rooted only in our own individual story, but lead us to share gratitude in community. Mount Olive's story is also one that should inspire all of us to action. How can we all participate in responding in gratitude across our communities? While not simple, it is a practical and vital decision that we must pursue in our current context. Atwood provides us with the questions and encouragement to take the necessary next steps.
David P. King, Indiana University
Choosing Gratitude is a powerful example of the freedom to choose how we will respond to the unexpected. Dennis Atwood exemplifies facing the reality of a chronic condition with authenticity and courage. A book for those who desire to use their experience of suffering for something good in the world!
Steven N. Scoggin, Wake Forest University
Dennis Atwood has written a deeply personal and biblical guide to gratitude. Though living with the debilitating effects of Parkinson's disease, he has chosen gratitude as his lens for looking backward and moving forward. But Atwood doesn't stop with personal gratitude. He envisions gratitude as generosity expressed outwardly to the community. His highly impactful "Gratitude Project" is a model for churches large and small. Choosing Gratitude is a very inspiring read.
Rebekah Simon-Peter, Author of Believe Like Jesus