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November is traditionally the month we're supposed to be introspective; where we attempt to be purposeful in remembering what we have to be thankful for; that is, if we're not too distracted by all of the pre-Christmas pomp which calls to us each year to look past Thanksgiving.
For some, this is a painful time of year. Losses we've encountered can certainly cause us to wonder how we'll be able to make it. During such times, it can be challenging to remain thankful in the midst of trial.
Trials are odd things. While some are self-inflicted, others are allowed by God. In both cases, if we'll submit to God and let Him do what He wants through these situations, good can still come from it.
James 1:2-4 says, "Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing" (emphasis added). Troubles will come (even to God's people), but the challenge to us is not what we go through, but how we go through it.
When it really gets maddening, though, is when you feel like you're doing your best to do God's will, and things get worse; like trying to rub a stain out of your shirt that only gets worse the more you rub it. You wonder aloud, "God; am I doing something wrong? Am I an evil person who's simply getting what I deserve? I know you love me, but why doesn't it feel like it? You are the King of the Universe, so why the delay?"
Jeremiah 29:11 states, "'For I know the plans I have for you, 'says the Lord.' They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.'"
If you read the first 10 verses of Jeremiah 29, God is telling His people who are in exile in Babylon to trust Him in the midst of their exile, and that at the end of 70 years He will restore them. He then encourages them with the promise in verse 11. The point is; God doesn't play favorites; you have not been singled out as the lone exception to this. His plan for ALL of us is freedom and victory. But He will allow us to go through seasons of testing to build our trust in Him, become more like Him, and let His glory be seen.
This past Sunday Pastor Perry's wife (Melissa) shared a scripture from 1 Thessalonians 5:18 which reads, "Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus." She then shared a powerful story about thankfulness from an example in the life of Corrie Ten Boom.
Corrie Ten Boom and her sister were imprisoned in a Nazi concentration camp during World War II and admittedly were struggling to find things to be thankful for. Corrie's sister then said one day, "Let's thank God for our lice," which Corrie (understandably) questioned. Still, she went ahead and joined her sister in thanking God for their physical condition.
It wasn't that they were happy for the lice, but they chose to be thankful (as the scripture above says) in their circumstance. As a result, though Corrie's sister died while in prison, the German guards never bothered them or the other ladies involved in their Bible study because they didn't want to expose themselves to the lice. While the lice was a very negative thing, it actually ended up being used by God to spare them from worse.
You may be encountering a major trial in your life right now, but be encouraged; if we'll seek God and be thankful, His Word promises us that we will receive His peace.
Philippians 4:6-7 reads, "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done. Then you will receive God's peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Jesus Christ."
Amen!!!
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perry meade
