Give God Thanks in All Things, Even Difficult Times
I think we focus so much on Christmas that we can forget what a blessing Thanksgiving is.
We can say the reason is because this distinctly American holiday cannot be as monetized as other year-end holidays and events, but I think there is a more significant reason. I think it’s because we either don’t want to, or don’t know how to, give thanks, and that is exactly what this day asks of us.
But on this day that reminds us of God’s faithfulness, we should be giving thanks to Him.
Giving Thanks During Hardship
Maybe you’re thinking, “You don’t know what I’m going through. I’m so stressed right now. I’m facing a problem, and I don’t want to give thanks.”
Scripture says this, “Therefore, let us offer through Jesus a continual sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to his name” (Hebrews 13:15 NLT). Sometimes praising God is a sacrifice, but we should always do it.
The Bible also says we should give thanks to the Lord because He is good (see Psalm 106:1), not because we feel good.
And by the way, I believe the things that we call bad in this life may not be as bad as we think they are. We need a little time to pass until we can look back with some 20/20 hindsight and get the big picture.
When I get to Heaven and look back on my life, I think some of the things I thought were bad may actually turn out to have been very good things, because those so-called bad things produced something in me that was necessary.
God Can Use the Bad for Good
The Bible tells the story of Joseph, who was sent to prison after being falsely charged. I don’t think Joseph thought that was a good thing. But God was preparing him for something. In Joseph’s case, he would become one of the most powerful men on the face of the earth, second only to the pharaoh himself.
When I was a kid, I lived for a number of years with my grandparents, Charles and Stella McDaniel. They were from Arkansas, and my grandmother was the greatest cook of all time. She would make everything from scratch, and it was all southern food. Her crowning culinary achievement, however, were her biscuits. In fact, I’ve spent my life searching for a biscuit as good as my grandmother’s!
She used vegetable oil, self-rising flour, and buttermilk to create them. Now, I’m not going to sit down and have a cup of self-rising flour for lunch, and I’m not going to drink a little vegetable oil. Nor will I drink buttermilk (though some people do; I don’t know why). But when my grandmother carefully brought all of those elements together and put them into a hot oven, out came those excellent biscuits!
Similarly, God takes the events of our lives—including the bad—mixes them together with expert hands, and puts them into the oven. And when it’s all done, we realize that it is good.
The Bible reminds us that “our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever” (2 Corinthians 4:17 NLT).
Giving Thanks Is God’s Will
The apostle Paul wrote, “In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:18 NKJV). Notice it says in everything give thanks. There are no exceptions, no excuses; we should give thanks in all circumstances.
In the original language, the phrase translated “in everything” means “in connection with everything that occurs.” This, of course, would not include our sins. I wouldn’t give thanks for a sin I’ve committed or for the repercussions I face as a result.
You might say, “Greg, my heart isn’t in it.” That doesn’t matter. This is about giving thanks because God is good and because He’s in control of all the circumstances surrounding your life.
In a relatively short time, Job lost everything that was precious to him. Yet Job gave thanks to God, “I came naked from my mother’s womb, and I will be naked when I leave. The Lord gave me what I had, and the Lord has taken it away. Praise the name of the Lord!” (Job 1:21 NLT). We should do the same.
The Bible also gives an account of ten men with leprosy who were healed by Jesus. At that time, leprosy was an incurable disease. If you had leprosy, it was only a matter of time until you would die. Plus, you were ostracized in your community.
These men asked Jesus to heal them, and Jesus did. But only one of the men returned to thank him. In fact, the Bible tells us that “one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks…” (Luke 17:15–16 NKJV).
Jesus said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine?” (verse 17 NKJV). You see, we’re quick to receive blessings from God, but we’re not so quick to return thanks to God.
Even if you’re going through a difficult time, tell your Father in Heaven that you love Him. Give verbal praise to God. For the Christian, every day should be Thanksgiving.
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