In Everything, Give Thanks

One of the best things we can do for ourselves is to be thankful during difficult times. I have been trying to focus on the positive things in my life and not the difficulties, because difficulties will consume me.

I opened up the bible to 1 Thessalonians this morning. It says to rejoice always. Some days it is harder find reasons to rejoice. Do you ever have those days? I do. I  just want to crawl back into bed and pull up the covers. There are always reasons to rejoice. It says to pray without ceasing. We should rejoice in all that we have and pray about our worries and problems constantly. God does not want our worries to burden us and weigh us down. God will take all our worries from us and free us, if we trust in him. We should give thanks during the good times and the bad, because this is God’s will for us.

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
–1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NKJV)

Five years ago, we went through a very difficult time. My husband’s work contract was not renewed, so he was out of work. I had surgery, and a week after my surgery, my dad died of cancer. It was not a good time for us. The best thing that happened during that time was finding God. It felt like we lost everything, and I turned to God. I trusted in God. And, God came all the way through for us. God took care of things that we didn’t even know we needed. God gave my husband a job. God gave us a new house, in a nice neighborhood, in a new state. God gave me the opportunity to stay at home with my kids. God brought us to a new church. Once we turned to God, he turned our lives completely around. It is still painful to remember those 7 months, but I am thankful for going through them. God used that time to bring us back to him.

Now, my mom has stage 4 cancer. It is hard. The difference is that now I have God in my life. What was once excruciating, is now bearable, because God is with me. I still have difficult days, yet God takes away the pain, so I feel at peace. Once you feel God’s presence, you will never want that peace to go away. I am so thankful that God brought me back to him. In everything, give thanks to God.