Give Thanks In All Circumstances

All I want to say is ‘THANK YOU LORD!’

One of the simplest things we often overlook or forget is being grateful for everything. Many a times we are so engrossed in our current situation and oblivious of what’s happening around us. We fail to even recognize the most important things that mean so much to us.

There are times when, for instance, your career means so much to you. After all it brings food to your table. You spend so much time and effort to ensure that your career blossoms. You have people around you who support you all the way in a subtle way and you are flying high.

The trick is that you will feel good about your success and attribute that to your hard work. Well you are right; you worked hard to be where you are. If you pause and think about it, in the process there are people who prayed for you to succeed. In the process there are people who gave you courage when the going got tough. In the process there are people who were determined to see you fail but you persevered. In the process somebody ensured that you have eaten something in between your busy schedules. The list goes on…

We tend to forget that whatever we are, it is by the grace of God. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:10, “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them–yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.”

On the flipside of the coin, when we are going through hard times and through pain, we tend to forget to thank God for his grace. It’s easy to start sulking and blaming everyone else for our suffering. It’s easy to even question ‘Why me Lord?’ when we are going through hardships.

We forget that our current suffering is nothing compared to the Glory promised to us. We forget that because we are children of God, the suffering we are going through is only a way in which the Father is disciplining us. We forget that the trials and tribulations we go through are a test of our faith in Him. We forget that the sufferings we go through are only meant to build our character.

The bottom line is that we need to do the will of God at all times, whether good or bad times. The other day I was praying to the Lord that he teaches me to do his will and after that I read the word and this is the scripture he directed me to:

“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (I Thessalonians 5 : 16 – 18).

By the Grace of God we were saved and this grace was not because we deserved it, but it was a gift from God. We need to thank God all the time for that. We need to thank God for everything we have. We need to thank God for the people around us. We need to thank God in all circumstances because of his love.

“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.” (Colossians 2:6-7)