"In Everything Give Thanks "
Living Word Article
by Joan Minor
UMCH Spiritual Life Coordinator
"In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."
I Thessalonians 5:18
Working at the children’s home, I have been asked by people if the youth are bitter or resentful about their situations. Ask me if any adolescent is bitter or resentful about their situation, and the answer is probably yes! The truth is most young people are disillusioned with this world, as many of us are. This world is full of darkness, and those of us who live in the light often question the evil around us. And yet, these kids who have sometimes seen evil up close and in terrible ways, these kids are the most grateful and appreciative people I have ever met.
When Paul wrote this letter to the people of Thessalonica, did he mean that whatever happens to us is God’s will? Resoundingly: no. It is not God’s will that children are abused and neglected. Pastor Jack Hayford of Living Way Ministries noted about this verse that the will of God concerning us is that in everything we give thanks. God did not intend for horrible things to happen to children, but even in this, God asks that we give thanks. Pastor Jack said of giving thanks in terrible circumstances, “Not because God foisted or worked this number on you to get even with you or somebody else, but because the Lord says, ‘Into the poison pollution of this planet, if praise is lifted up there will come the presence of My power.’”
In my time at the children’s home, which admittedly has been brief, I have never heard a youth say, “Why did God let this happen to me?” Never. What I have heard is “God brought me through that time. God has a plan for me, and I’m going to trust Him.” Their faith is astounding in the darkest of times, and their thanksgiving is even more bountiful.
We recently received a donation of handmade quilts from the Gilead United Methodist Church in Centralia. When I brought those quilts into the girls’ home, 16-year old Emily’s eyes lit up. She looked through every quilt, marveling over the generosity of that church. She picked out a purple and white quilt for herself and told me to make sure I thanked those ladies for her.
“I can’t believe how nice people are to us. They don’t even know us, and they did this for us,” she said.
In this season of thanks, search your community for people whose lives you can touch. Even in the worst of circumstances, each of us can give thanks to God by serving others around us. We can lift up our praise by modeling Christ’s actions as a servant to those less fortunate.