“Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” 1 Thessalonians 5:18
“Giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 5:20
“I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart; I will recount all of Your wonderful deeds.” Psalm 9:1
There is a running theme in these three verses. It is something I am challenged with and should be always doing…giving thanks.
We are officially a couple of weeks into 2015, and I hope there has been time for you to reflect on the past year and look forward to what is ahead for you.
For me, there has been a time of reflection as I focused my thoughts on being thankful for everything that has happened in the last year of my life. I started by thinking about all of the good things: my health, my wife and two boys, my job, my talents, that I have a house and food. The list could go on and on and on…
But then the verse from Thessalonians came to mind… “Give thanks in ALL CIRCUMSTANCES”. It was a good reminder to me — that I should be thankful for everything in ALL (not some), but ALL CIRCUMSTANCES. I started to think about the bad things that happened in the last year, prayers that didn’t get answered, other circumstances that were tough. It was rough, but I thanked God for those times as well.
The Psalmist says in 107:1, “Oh Give thanks to the Lord, for HE IS GOOD, for his steadfast love endures forever!”
God is so good to us in all things. In all circumstances, both the good and the bad!
“I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart; I will recount all of Your wonderful deeds.” Psalm 9:1
With the New Year here, many of us made resolutions and looked for ways to “improve” our lives and take a step closer to a goal. These resolutions can be good — to examine our lives and see how we can improve in different areas, like reading the Bible daily, praying more, eating better, exercising more, giving more of our time serving, tightening up our budget and the list goes on. But let’s not forget the resolution God challenges us with in these verses — give thanks in all circumstances this year!
Giving Thanks –
Tony
Posted in A Word from the Pastor