30 Days of Thanksgiving

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; his love endures forever. Psalm 107:1

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1Thessalonians 5:18

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:2-4

To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 2 Corinthians 12:7-10

I have a lot to be thankful for, I know this. I like to think that I am generally pretty appreciative of the blessings in my life, but in all honestly, it's not hard to have gratitude for the good stuff. It's not quite so easy to, as Paul puts it, "delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties". And yet in the letter to the Thessalonians, he insists that we "give thanks in all circumstances".

Give thanks for the not-so-good stuff? Uh, not so much.

Several years ago, I heard a missionary family speak and they told about being in some pretty dire circumstances. The supply plane that brought food and fresh water to them in war-torn Angola was weeks late - it simply couldn't get through safely. They made what little food they had last as long as it could until finally there was only enough flour left to make bread for one last meal. (Like Elijah and the widow!) As they prepared to eat their meager meal, the father gave thanks for the bread and then he continued to thank God for their present circumstances. "Thank you for these difficulties", he prayed, "and thank you for testing our faith." The missionary went on to explain to us that though he had a hard time actually feeling gratitude for their circumstances (which were really starting to look dire), he had to be obedient and thank the Lord for even this.

Well, as it turned out, they were able to get a bag of flour the next day (sorry, I forget exactly how) and it got them through until the plane finally arrived several days later. And though they never doubted that God would provide for them, thanking Him for their lack of provisions was a new and humbling experience. They discovered that giving thanks for the blessings is only half of the equation. We have to give thanks to Him for it all. Because He uses it all to shape and mold us into His people.

So, for the next 30 days, I am going to consciously seek out the stuff that I ordinarily would NOT be too thankful for. I do not live in dire circumstances like the Schmidts did. Minor annoyances are about the worst I have to deal with on a day to day basis. But for the next 30 days I will try to give thanks - even rejoice! - in all circumstances, but especially in difficulties.