Praise the Lord for this glorious day. Paul whose life was dramatically transformed by the Lord Jesus was full of doxology. He begins his letter to the Ephesians, with unending praise and thanksgiving to the Lord. In 1 Thessalonians 5, we are called to give thanks to the Lord in all situations. It’s easy to give thanks in all circumstances when circumstances are good. It’s easy to thank God when circumstances are good. But what about when circumstances are NOT good? The Thessalonians are struggling with this exact same issue. They love Jesus. They look forward to His return. They share their faith with others. But not everything is going well. Some of them are being persecuted. According to Acts 17, some were even arrested! And Paul wants them to know how to handle hard times. Beginning with verse 16, he mentions three ways we can live for Christ when life is difficult. Number one: God wants us to be joyful. The Greek word refers to a state of happiness that is not affected by outward circumstances. The same word is used by Paul in Philippines 4:4 when he says “Rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS, and again I say Rejoice!” The joyful Christian says "Even though things don't always go the way I want them to go, I still rejoice in my relationship with the Lord Jesus.! I rejoice because even though I still have problems, Jesus has already taken care of my BIGGEST problem! But even in the middle of a rotten day, we can still say “Lord, if this is the worst thing that ever happens to me, I’m doing all right. I rejoice because I know my troubles aren’t going to last forever! I rejoice because all things work together for the good of those who love God! I rejoice because the trials and tribulations of this life are designed to make me more like Jesus!” New Testament scholar Leon Morris says that “The first Christians thought more of their Lord than of their difficulties. They thought more of their riches in Christ than of their poverty on the earth. And that’s what makes it possible to be joyful always.” The Lord wants us to be joyful. He wants us to be prayerful. Verse 17 says “Pray continually.” Praying continually doesn’t mean that you can’t do anything else. It means that prayer should be a common and constant practice WHEREVER you are! He wants us to be joyful. He wants us to be prayerful. He wants us to be thankful. Verse 18 says “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” And you may not be able to say, "God, thank you that my child has become totally rebellious and is making our family life miserable." But you can say, "God, I give you thanks in this because you have the power to work miracles. You have the power to change my child's heart. I give you thanks because you are always a source of comfort to me during difficult times." Being thankful isn’t always easy...it takes effort, it requires discipline. But if you’ll do it, you’ll become stronger spiritually. Not only that, giving thanks with great joy is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. In Philippians chapter 1, Paul is sitting in prison. Writing to the Philippian Church. He could have said, “Get me out of here! I didn’t do anything wrong! I don’t deserve this!” But watch what he says starting with verse three: “I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” In other words, “even though I’m in jail, I still have a reason to rejoice!” I still have a reason to celebrate! God is doing great things in your lives, and someday, we will be together again in His presence!” Giving thanks with great joy is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. And then over in Habbakuk chapter 3, the prophet is learning how to put things in perspective in spite of his circumstances. In verse 17, he says “though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, vs. 18, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior.” In other words, “My happiness is not based on what happens around me. My happiness comes from being close to God!” I have faith that He will be my source of strength in times of sorrow! I have faith that even if things don’t work out the way I want, things are going to work out the way GOD wants!” Giving thanks with great joy is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.Some of you are going through a rough time. It may be a medical issue. Some days, you get by all right. Other days are so bad you can’t stand it. You wonder “How long is this going to go on? How long am I going to have to put up with this?” We all have moments when we get frustrated with our circumstances. I’m the same way. But I want to challenge you to thank God in spite of your circumstances. You can say "Thank You that I’m alive! Thank You that I have people in my life who love me! Thank You that I can still have a ministry on the earth even in my sickness! Thank you for all the things I DO have.” I have an email that was sent to me a while back. It says that "If you woke up this morning with more health than illness, you are more blessed than the six million who won’t make it through the week.If you have never experienced the danger of battle, the loneliness of imprisonment, the agony of torture, or the pangs of starvation, you are ahead of 500 million people in the world.If you can attend a church service without fear of persecution, arrest, torture or death, you are more blessed than 3 billion people in the world.If you have food in the fridge, clothes on your back, a roof over your head, and a place to sleep, you are richer than 75% of the world.If you have money in the bank, money in your wallet, and spare change in a dish someplace, you are among the top 8% of the worlds wealthy."
Praise the Lord, who is sovereign. Praise Him for He is trustworthy. He is mighty and merciful. In Him we live, move and have our being.
Thanking Him,
Brown
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