“Thanksgiving reminds us that no matter what befalls us in life, we can take the charred remnants and we can reconstruct a life unimaginably richer than that from which the shards and pieces fell.” – Craig D. Lounsbrough
How do you even give thanks in a very dark season of your life?
I remember walking into a room with an older friend about 14 years ago. The pictures in the living room quickly caught my attention and I drew closer to catch a better view. In that picture was a very light-skinned lady with her two little daughters. She was very pretty and so were her daughters. You could see the light radiating from their eyes.
I had barely moved away from the picture, when a lady stepped into the room. She looked just like the woman in the picture, but the light in her eyes were dim and she looked pale and emotionally worn out. I said my greetings and asked if she was the one in the picture, she smiled and said yes.
I commended her pretty face and told her she looked so different from the radiant woman in the picture. She replied with a deep sigh, smiled and said, ‘ I thank God for everything’, and walked away leaving me thinking about her last words. I later found out that her had husband died some months earlier in a plane crash.
I remember her words today and I can imagine how much it took to utter those words, ‘I thank God for everything’. How do you even thank God in a helpless and hopeless situation?
But I think of Jesus and how he gave thanks just before his crucifixion and death. He was happy to eat his last meal with his disciples and started his conversation by giving thanks to God – knowing that the days to come were going to be hard. Yet, Jesus still gave thanks. And thanksgiving remained evident throughout his life and ministry.
He gave thanks at the grave of his friend Lazarus who had died days before. He gave God thanks just before feeding a multitude without food. He gave God thanks just before his arrest and crucifixion.
Jesus never wished away his season of pain, but rather gave God thanks because he trusted God’s will and purpose for his life. So, why don’t you give God thanks today irrespective of what you maybe going through.
You know how easy it is to give God thanks when all is well in your life, but thanking God in times of pain, trials and difficulty will take a lot of faith and trust in God. Thanksgiving will you give you strength to keep walking in the midst of every pain, trial and difficulty in your life.
Someone said this, ” Thanksgiving does not remove the trials and tribulations in our lives, but it does empower us to endure to the end.”
So why don’t you give God thanks today in the midst of your pain and difficulty.
Why not thank God irrespective of how hopeless and faithless you may be feeling right now.
Why not thank him in the emptiness and weariness in your life.
Why not thank him in the silence that grips your soul.
Why not thank him in the mess and many questions ringing in your head.
Why not thank God today and trust him to lead you through the raging storms of life.
