My teenage son recently had the opportunity to lead a small Bible study with some friends.
In one of his illustrations about gratitude and contentment, he acted out a pretend robbery and stabbing on a subway and asked the teens, “What could he still be thankful for in this situation?”
Some of the answers were, “He wasn’t killed,” “He was able to get medical care,” “Someone was there to help him,” and “He knows God.” All good answers, especially from kids.
But many of us adults know there are times when no one is nearby to help or when the doctors aren’t able to save someone we love. Figuring out how to be thankful when life is hard isn’t always so simple. We might still come up with some answers, but they wouldn’t come nearly so easily.
Struggling with Daily Life & Hardships
Perhaps we aren’t facing something as drastic as losing someone we love. Maybe we just feel as though we are already working at our limit and prices keep going up. We’re working extra hours or two jobs, and medical bills, car payments, or other debt keep us stuck where we are. We feel as though we can never get ahead.
Sometimes it’s even harder to feel thankful then because those worries are always in the back of our minds, wearing us down. We constantly feel behind, overwhelmed, and discouraged.
Or perhaps our struggle with thankfulness has nothing to do with finances but more with relationships. Estrangement from parents, a spouse, or our children will certainly affect how we feel.
Finding Gratitude When Life is Hard
The Bible talks about thankfulness in difficult times.
God tells us to give thanks in everything (1 Thessalonians 5:18). I read once that Paul uses “in” rather than “for” – so we don’t need to give thanks for tragedy or pain. But we can give thanks in the midst of those situations because God keeps His promises – to comfort us, to stay with us, and to give us eternal life – even there.
But even though I wanted to stop right there, I kept thinking.
If God is in control, if He is sovereign over everything, and if He makes all things work together for good to those who love Him (Romans 8:28), then even the bad things – the tragedy, the disappointment, the pain – are being worked by God for our good.
God’s goal is to make us more like His Son, Jesus Christ, and that is for our good. Everything that happens to us changes us in some way. And if we allow God to use those circumstances to make us more like Jesus – more dependent on God instead of ourselves, more compassionate and understanding toward others, more whatever we need to be – then even the pain and evil that made us more like Jesus are things we can be thankful for.
I do not mean this flippantly. Losing a child, a job, or a spouse is not something we experience without sorrow.
Even Jesus cried at the death of His friend Lazarus.
Trusting God – Even When It Doesn’t Make Sense
At this time of the year, we are often culturally reminded to be thankful, perhaps we need to look beyond what we feel. Sometimes God may be using difficult circumstances to get our attention, showing us something in our lives that needs to change so that we become more like Jesus.
But sometimes He is simply working in ways we don’t understand.
Either way, choosing gratitude is possible. We may still feel sorrow, frustration, or disappointment, but we can trust the One who loves us, who has all things under His control, and who is working everything for our good.
For more thought-provoking topics, tune in to Hope 100.7.
God bless you. Stay hopeful! ❤️
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