1 Thessalonians 5:18--In Everything Give Thanks
You’re heading out
the door to go to a Bible study. When you go to get into your car,
you notice the front, left tire is flat. You call AAA, but by the
time they arrive and fix the tire, you look at your watch and
realize that the Bible study is probably almost over. So, you head
back into the house to change clothes and settle in for the night.
Sometimes our
initial thought in these types of circumstances is to blame Satan
for such incidences. After all, you were going to a Bible study.
The Lord would have wanted you to be there; therefore, Satan must
have made your tire go flat to prevent you from going. On the other
hand, if you had left your home at the intended time, the car that
ran the stop sign three blocks away would have hit you directly in
the driver’s side at the very moment you were to pass through the
intersection. Therefore, God might have allowed your tire go flat
to protect you from being in an accident.
Have you been in
situations like this and wondered exactly who was in control? The
question makes perfect sense to me, but I’ve gotten strange looks
when I have voiced it out loud. When you can see both sides of the
issue as with the scenario above, who do you give credit to? I’ve
long thought that this was one of the toughest discernment areas of
the Christian life.
Early in the
school year, the Christian school at which my husband once served as
Headmaster had a Spiritual Emphasis week planned for the middle and
high school students. They were to spend four days at a nearby
camp, and arrangements had been made months prior for one of their
favorite youth speakers, Neal Hatfield, to fly in from North
Carolina to minister to them for the week. The church family had
been praying for the teens for weeks, asking God to do a very
special work in their lives.
Monday afternoon,
hurricane warnings were issued for our area. High winds and heavy
rains were predicted, so the local public school system immediately
announced that public schools would be closed. Private schools
quickly followed suit. In addition, the camp owner called and said
that if the area got the amount of rain that was predicted, it would
be impossible for the school to use their facilities. Therefore,
after months of prayer, planning and expectation, the plans for this
camp fell apart in a matter of hours.
The expectancy
level had been very high for this event, and many were disappointed
that the retreat wouldn’t take place. The day after the
cancellation, I was once again pondering the “who was responsible
for this?” question. After all, Scripture does make it clear that
Satan is the prince of this world. Certainly it could have only
been Satan. He would not have wanted this retreat to take place and
risk some of the teens getting out of his grip. Yet, at the same
time, I was trying to assimilate this line of reasoning with the
verse “in everything give thanks.” How can I give thanks for
something that was so obviously Satan’s doing?
In one of those
rare occasions that are so precious in a believer’s life, when we’re
certain beyond a doubt that God has spoken to us, I sensed God
saying to me, “The reason I want you to thank me for everything
is because I don’t want Satan to get credit for anything.”
That has been
years ago, yet I still haven’t gotten over the revelation of that
moment and the clarity of that Scripture’s meaning. God’s Word
tells us in a number of places to give thanks in all things, and
I’ve been familiar with them for years. It’s one of the principles
that I’ve been trying to improve on in my life, but I never could
totally grasp how that could be done, particularly when
circumstances seemed only contributable to Satan. Now I had my
answer. It couldn’t get any simpler or plainer. The verse means
exactly what it says, “In everything give thanks, for this is the
will of God.” Period. By giving thanks to God for everything,
I give Him credit for everything. I give Him all the praise
and glory. My focus is on Him. That’s what He wants. He wants my
undivided attention.
To acknowledge
Satan in any fashion, shape or form bestows credit, praise and
attention on him, and that dishonors God. If the tire goes flat,
I’m to thank the Lord. If the weather cancels out an important
event, I’m to thank the Lord. If I get fired from my job, I’m to
thank the Lord. If I get sick, I’m to thank the Lord. When the Lord says
“everything,” He literally means “everything,” regardless of the
lightness or severity of the situation.
Many years after
having this insight, while teaching a ladies Bible study, it hit me
that another result of thanking God for everything is that it
removes "me" and "us" from the equation. We believers tend to
do so many things in our power, rather than in the power of the Holy
Spirit. Therefore, we don't thank the Lord for much of the
good that happens in our lives because I think, deep down, we see
our achievements as things we accomplished with our talents and our
abilities. We soak up compliments from others and become
proud.
Again, by
thanking and focusing on the Lord Jesus Christ, we give Him glory
and credit for ALL things, recognizing that whatever talents, gifts
or abilities we might have, they have been bestowed on us by a
loving, generous and gracious God.
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