Thankful IN Everything

It’s that time of year! Has your social media feed been filled with people talking about what they are thankful for? It is a good practice to purposefully be thankful! I am often reminded, especially at this time of year, just how important this attitude of thanksgiving really is for us as Christians. 1 Thessalonians 5 includes a series of commands that Paul uses to admonish the believers in the church at Thessalonica. There are some “famous” commands in this passage such as “See that none render evil for evil” (5:15), or “Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing” (5:16-17). Remember the command to “Quench not the Spirit” (5:19), or what about “Abstain from all appearance of evil” (5:22)? Nestled right in the middle of these familiar commands is a simple one that I purposely skipped over that ties into that one about constantly being in an attitude of prayer. It is a simple statement, but it takes a lot to obey it.

Paul says this in 1 Thessalonians 5:18, “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” Simple right? Well, I find it simple enough to read, but this is a tough one to live out in everyday life.

​Let me give you a real-life example. About a month and a half ago, I noticed that there was a light on the dashboard on my car that resembled an engine. It was nice and autumn-like in color with its amber glow. Now I know our audience here on IE is probably mostly women. So let me point out that when we see those nice glowing lights on the dashboard, we are not supposed to ignore them or even admire them. They are not amber-colored for the season. They are warning lights! I was educated about this early in my driving career by my dad who so carefully kept up the maintenance on our cars to ensure that none of the ladies in his life would call him from the side of the road with smoke billowing from under the hood. Warning lights are something to be thankful for and also to alert whoever takes care of those things for you! Back in last month, I heeded my dad's advice and took the car to the local mechanic to have it looked at. I will spare you all the details of the diagnostic process, but let me point out that, although I am NOT a mechanic, I recognized the name of the part they were talking about. Why? Because just a few years ago, I was in this same lobby of the mechanic’s shop and paid them A LOT of money to replace this part! It is something I will not forget.

After speaking to the office manager about the situation and getting the affirmation from the mechanic that this part had indeed failed again, we decided to investigate and see what could be done other than just paying the large sum of money again. I went home that day and prayed that the Lord’s will would be done. I thanked Him for the warning light. A few days later, I dropped the car off to have the necessary repair done and received word when it was finished that the part was under a warranty from the manufacturer, and they would also pay the cost of the labor for this whole job! I was so thankful to the Lord! First Thessalonians 5:18 came easy that day! Fast forward to last week. Another lovely light came on while I was driving, and the car was not behaving as it should.

Honestly, my first thought was NOT one of thanksgiving! It was more of a “woe is me” and “I hate this car” type of thinking. Again, to spare you the details, I took the car back to the mechanic and then picked up the car the next day. This time I did not walk out with a bill that said $0! It was MUCH more than that. Can I be thankful in this situation too? As I drove away, I began to consider what I could have done with that money just spent on the car. I began to worry about what would happen next! But then through the reminders of God’s blessed Holy Spirit, my amazing parents, and good friends who helped to point to me Christ this verse came to mind. Thankful for everything. That is God’s will for me, even when that means an expensive car repair.

This is a trivial situation considering a lot that I know other people are going through. Maybe you are dealing with a life-threatening illness or a child who is ill. Maybe you are having major problems in your marriage or at your job. Maybe you are struggling financially. Maybe it’s a mental health issue. These are BIG problems that I am in no way minimizing or trivializing, but the reality is that life doesn’t always go the way we want it to. It can be really hard, but I want to help you think biblically about these hard times as well as the good ones in light of Paul’s command.

Paul didn’t tell the Thessalonians to be thankful FOR everything. I can’t imagine being thankful for a cancer diagnosis or a miscarriage or even for a pricey, unexpected car repair. But I know that the blessed Holy Spirit can help all of us to be thankful IN everything! Did you catch that little preposition? The command is to be thankful IN everything! Here’s a thought that helps me obey this very difficult command - Thankfulness does not depend on favorable circumstances. I am merely commanded to be thankful IN everything! That is a tall order to follow. Remember the preceding command Paul gives? “Pray without ceasing” (5:17). Living in that attitude of prayer will make it easier for us to thank the Lord in everything. Sometimes, when we look at the circumstances in our lives, we wonder what God is doing, and we bypass our thanksgiving in prayer because our circumstances don’t seem to lend themselves to an attitude of thanksgiving.

​Maybe instead of bypassing the thanksgiving, we need to pray something like this: “Lord, I don’t understand everything you are doing in my life, but I trust you and am thankful that you are still working behind the scenes even though I can’t really see what you are doing right now. Thank you that you have not forgotten me.” 

I hope we will all spend some time in the next few weeks sitting around the table sharing thoughts of thanksgiving, but may we never forget that part of God’s will for us is to be thankful IN every situation even when we don’t understand it.

How can we learn to be genuinely thankful in difficult situations, even when we don’t yet see God’s purpose in them?