There have been two short passages that have spoken to me recently:
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 New International Version (NIV)
16 Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
James 1:2-4 New International Version (NIV)
2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything..
I've read and heard these verses all my life. The concept of being joyful and thankful in all of life's circumstances - good and bad, is not a new one. And it is one that I always gave a passing nod. Yes, yes, of course, I rejoice and give thanks for my trials, because I'm supposed to. Not because I am particularly joyful, or thankful. In fact, I am often the opposite.
My husband and I have been going through a difficult time in our lives. Not just with my health problems, but a few weeks after I came home from the hospital, my husband lost his job. I am unable to work because of my health, and my husband not working left us in further financial distress. While we live in Canada and health care is (sort of) free, there are still costs associated with my treatment that are not covered. In the midst of this, I feel the Holy Spirit's conviction that I should rejoice and be thankful. Really? God’s way does not always make sense to our human nature. It seems illogical that there should be joyousness and thankfulness in the midst of trials. Yet we are admonished to rejoice and give thanks in all things. I find I certainly require God’s help with this. And the best thing is, He gives it. And He has been giving me plenty of opportunities to practice.
As I am trying to fully understand and apply this to my life, I have done a little bit of research on the above verses. I read a few commentaries on the verses, compared versions of the bible, prayed and tried to listen. And I think I learned a few things.
First, Paul and James are not talking about an emotion here, but an attitude. Emotions are ethereal things, they are flighty, come and go. But our attitude is much more permanent and under our control.
There was a moment, not too long ago, when my attitude was not particularly thankful. You see, I was whining about dinner. There was food in the fridge, but it wasn’t something I particularly liked and there wasn’t really a choice of much else to eat. It wasn’t what I wanted so, I whined to my husband. Instantly I was convicted by the Holy Spirit. (I realize some of you reading this may not be Christians, and may not understand that statement. I am not certain that I can explain it in a way that is succinct and adequate so that you understand, or that is theologically sound, but I will try. When Jesus died, rose from the dead and returned to heaven, He sent the Holy Spirit (part of the Trinity - i.e. part of God himself) to be the direct link between us and God. The Holy Spirit allows for communication and personal relationship with God. For me, in this instance, it was like a foreign thought in my mind. A thought that occurred to me, but totally surprised me in such a way that I didn’t feel it was my own thought. Normally this is not how the Holy Spirit communicates with me, but in this instance it was very clear.)
Back to my story… So, I was whining and felt convicted… at least I had food and wasn’t eating dirt cookies. However hard off I am in comparison to other Canadians, I am far better off than millions of other people in the world. And I am whining? Perhaps, instead, I should be thankful that I live in a country where being poor means that you have food to eat. I could also be worse off than I am, I could be homeless and living on the streets. Perhaps instead of focusing on what I don’t have, I should be focusing on what I do have. Count your blessings, anyone?
Second, take another look at James 1, verses 3 and 4. Trials lead to perseverance (translated as endurance or patience in some versions) and perseverance leads to becoming “mature and complete”. So we are to count trials as joy because they lead to spiritual maturity. We are to be thankful and to rejoice because we know the purpose - spiritual maturity. So, what I take away from this is that trials are an opportunity to learn and grow. Furthermore, my trials may be an opportunity for others to learn and grow as well. Humans are relational beings. We were created for relationship - with God and each other. Nothing that affects me will ever only affect me. It will touch the lives of people around me as well. So when I rejoice in my trials, I not only rejoice for what God is doing in my life, but for the opportunity it provides for God to work in other’s lives as well. And frankly, this idea excites me! God is at work, not just in me but through me! I am excited and humbled in one.
Third, we have hope in knowing that whatever trials we are facing, God is at work for our best interest (Romans 8:28). If God is working for our best, then why shouldn't we rejoice and be thankful? We have the assurance that whatever difficulty we are facing, God is looking out for us. That doesn't mean He will wave a magic wand and make everything lovely because that wouldn't lead to spiritual maturity. The same way a parent who gives a child their every whim does not end up with a mature adult, but a spoiled child. God wants us to grow and become spiritually mature, and that means we need to do some learning.
Some of you might be thinking “spiritual maturity, blah blah, blah. I'd rather stay immature and have fewer trials”. I get that, sort of. But to go back to the spoiled child analogy, children who have had their every whim fulfilled generally aren't very happy adults, and when they meet the littlest bump in the road they can't cope. Same goes of spiritual maturity. When we face those trials (and we will, everyone does, it's part of life - we all get sick, have stresses, eventually die) if we are spiritually mature, we have a deep enough faith and relationship with God to weather the storm. We know He is with us. Trials are still hard, they still hurt, they still, well… suck. But we aren't alone. We have the almighty, all-powerful, awesome God of the universe on our side, working for our best. Who wouldn't be thankful, awed and joyful in that?!
Lastly, our trials provide opportunities for God to be glorified. I think sometimes, for non-believers, this statement can make it sound like God is egotistical and wants all the accolades for himself. This is not the God I know (though, truthfully He deserves all the accolades!) God being glorified allows for others to see Him as He is. It's like shining a big spotlight on God so that those who don’t know Him can seem Him for who He is - all powerful, all knowing, creator of the universe who loves us as individuals so much that He died for us. He sees into our lives, into who we are… and loves us. Values us. Whether he approves of our actions or not, He loves us. So, even when I’m being a whiny child about what’s on the menu for dinner… God loves me.
This post is getting long, but let me close by sharing one of the ways God has given me to practice thankfulness. Part of my treatment for pulmonary hypertension includes the use of a bi-pap machine - something that is not covered under regular medical and has a price tag around $3500. My husband and I could not afford to purchase a machine, even when he was working, and certainly not after he lost his job. It was important that I had this machine for while I sleep my O2 levels drop dangerously low (even on oxygen therapy) if I do not use the bi-pap machine. I was sent home from the hospital with one on loan, with the understanding that we would need to purchase one. As we explored ways to finance purchasing one, we kept hitting brick walls. We didn’t seem to qualify for any of the assistance programs available. The situation was looking quite bleak. The pastor of our church volunteered to set up a go-fund-me page and see where God took it. Within a couple weeks, we had raised half the money required. The number of people who donated was overwhelming. Not only friends and family, internet friends (whom I’d never met in person), friends of friends and family whom I’d never met, all gave generously. The fund plateaued for a few weeks, and then an anonymous donor got in touch with our pastor and volunteered to cover the remaining cost! I thank God for each loving and generous person who contributed towards the purchase of this machine for me. God’s timing is perfect. When I contacted the company to purchase the machine, they said that the timing was just right as they could give me a 25% discount (so the anonymous donor didn’t have to give as much as they had originally expected).
I’m not going to lie, these past few months have been hard and there are more hard days ahead. There are days where I just want to curl up in a little ball in bed, pull the blankets over my head and stay there. There are days when I am clinging desperately to the assurance that God has a plan, and I would be hard pressed to say I am thankful for the situation nor do I feel like rejoicing. But I am learning to be thankful in these situations, to rejoice in the opportunities they bring and to rely on God for the strength to carry on.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 New International Version (NIV)
16 Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
James 1:2-4 New International Version (NIV)
2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything..
My husband and I have been going through a difficult time in our lives. Not just with my health problems, but a few weeks after I came home from the hospital, my husband lost his job. I am unable to work because of my health, and my husband not working left us in further financial distress. While we live in Canada and health care is (sort of) free, there are still costs associated with my treatment that are not covered. In the midst of this, I feel the Holy Spirit's conviction that I should rejoice and be thankful. Really? God’s way does not always make sense to our human nature. It seems illogical that there should be joyousness and thankfulness in the midst of trials. Yet we are admonished to rejoice and give thanks in all things. I find I certainly require God’s help with this. And the best thing is, He gives it. And He has been giving me plenty of opportunities to practice.
As I am trying to fully understand and apply this to my life, I have done a little bit of research on the above verses. I read a few commentaries on the verses, compared versions of the bible, prayed and tried to listen. And I think I learned a few things.
First, Paul and James are not talking about an emotion here, but an attitude. Emotions are ethereal things, they are flighty, come and go. But our attitude is much more permanent and under our control.
Back to my story… So, I was whining and felt convicted… at least I had food and wasn’t eating dirt cookies. However hard off I am in comparison to other Canadians, I am far better off than millions of other people in the world. And I am whining? Perhaps, instead, I should be thankful that I live in a country where being poor means that you have food to eat. I could also be worse off than I am, I could be homeless and living on the streets. Perhaps instead of focusing on what I don’t have, I should be focusing on what I do have. Count your blessings, anyone?
Second, take another look at James 1, verses 3 and 4. Trials lead to perseverance (translated as endurance or patience in some versions) and perseverance leads to becoming “mature and complete”. So we are to count trials as joy because they lead to spiritual maturity. We are to be thankful and to rejoice because we know the purpose - spiritual maturity. So, what I take away from this is that trials are an opportunity to learn and grow. Furthermore, my trials may be an opportunity for others to learn and grow as well. Humans are relational beings. We were created for relationship - with God and each other. Nothing that affects me will ever only affect me. It will touch the lives of people around me as well. So when I rejoice in my trials, I not only rejoice for what God is doing in my life, but for the opportunity it provides for God to work in other’s lives as well. And frankly, this idea excites me! God is at work, not just in me but through me! I am excited and humbled in one.
Some of you might be thinking “spiritual maturity, blah blah, blah. I'd rather stay immature and have fewer trials”. I get that, sort of. But to go back to the spoiled child analogy, children who have had their every whim fulfilled generally aren't very happy adults, and when they meet the littlest bump in the road they can't cope. Same goes of spiritual maturity. When we face those trials (and we will, everyone does, it's part of life - we all get sick, have stresses, eventually die) if we are spiritually mature, we have a deep enough faith and relationship with God to weather the storm. We know He is with us. Trials are still hard, they still hurt, they still, well… suck. But we aren't alone. We have the almighty, all-powerful, awesome God of the universe on our side, working for our best. Who wouldn't be thankful, awed and joyful in that?!
Lastly, our trials provide opportunities for God to be glorified. I think sometimes, for non-believers, this statement can make it sound like God is egotistical and wants all the accolades for himself. This is not the God I know (though, truthfully He deserves all the accolades!) God being glorified allows for others to see Him as He is. It's like shining a big spotlight on God so that those who don’t know Him can seem Him for who He is - all powerful, all knowing, creator of the universe who loves us as individuals so much that He died for us. He sees into our lives, into who we are… and loves us. Values us. Whether he approves of our actions or not, He loves us. So, even when I’m being a whiny child about what’s on the menu for dinner… God loves me.
I’m not going to lie, these past few months have been hard and there are more hard days ahead. There are days where I just want to curl up in a little ball in bed, pull the blankets over my head and stay there. There are days when I am clinging desperately to the assurance that God has a plan, and I would be hard pressed to say I am thankful for the situation nor do I feel like rejoicing. But I am learning to be thankful in these situations, to rejoice in the opportunities they bring and to rely on God for the strength to carry on.
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