Give Thanks No Matter What...
By Ryan Dawson
With the Thanksgiving holiday just around the corner, many of us are becoming a little more mindful of the things we have to be grateful for. Around the Thanksgiving table, it is common for us to pause and thank God for our food, our family, our friends, our health, our homes, and the many other blessings that fill our lives. There is something beautiful about that simple practice of stopping long enough to recognize the goodness of God and to say, “Thank you.”
But I am also reminded that thanksgiving was never meant to be a once-a-year tradition. We don’t simply bring out thankfulness like our favourite Christmas decoration, enjoy it for a few weeks, and then put it away when the turkey is gone. Thanksgiving is meant to become a way of life. God desires to cultivate within us a heart that continually recognizes His goodness and responds with gratitude, not simply when life is going well, but even when life is difficult.
The Bible says: “Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18 (NLT)
Notice those words: “Be thankful in all circumstances.” Paul doesn’t say, “Give thanks when everything works out,” or “Give thanks when you get what you want,” or even “Give thanks because everything that happens is good.” He says, “Give thanks no matter what happens.”
But there is an important nuance to this. We are not necessarily called to be thankful for everything that happens, but we are called to give thanks in everything that happens. If I lose my wallet with $50 in it, I don’t have to pretend that losing my wallet is a blessing. But I can give thanks that I have a job and the ability to earn another $50. If I get into a car accident, I don’t have to be thankful for the accident, but I can be thankful that I wasn’t seriously injured and that God was with me through it.
But what about the really difficult things in life? What about the broken relationship, the financial pressure, the lost dream, the miscarriage, the diagnosis, the disappointment, or the death of someone we love? Am I really supposed to be thankful for those things? Honestly, I don’t think God asks us to call something good when it is painful or tragic. Scripture never asks us to deny our grief, suppress our sorrow, or pretend that everything is okay when it isn’t. Jesus Himself wept at the grave of Lazarus. The Psalms are filled with honest cries of pain and confusion. Faith doesn’t mean pretending that suffering doesn’t hurt.
But even in the midst of our pain, we can choose to give thanks. We can give thanks because God is still with us and He promises to never leave or forsake us. We can give thanks because God sees us and He understands the depth of our sorrow. We can give thanks because God’s character has not changed and He is able to bring beauty from our ashes.
This kind of thanksgiving is different. It is deeper than simply being grateful when life is good. It is the kind of gratitude that is rooted not in our circumstances but in the character of God. I love the phrase from Ann Voskamp’s One Thousand Gifts: “Thanksgiving comes before the miracle.” There is something powerful about choosing gratitude before we know how the story is going to end. Sometimes giving thanks is an act of faith. We are saying, “God, I don’t understand this. I don’t know what You are doing. I wish this were different. But I still believe You are good, and I choose to trust You.”
Maybe this Thanksgiving finds you in a difficult season. Maybe you have lost a job, lost a loved one, lost a dream, experienced a disappointment, or are carrying a burden that few people know about. Maybe while others are gathering around tables filled with laughter and celebration, your heart feels a little heavier than usual. If that is you, I want to remind you that you don’t have to manufacture happiness to give thanks. You simply need to remember who God is.
Your Father in heaven sees you. He knows you and He loves you. He is close to the broken-hearted and His grace is sufficient for you. Your difficult season may last longer than you hoped, but it will not last forever. The God who has carried you this far will continue to carry you. And even when you cannot yet see the morning, you can trust that the darkness will not have the final word. As the Psalmist reminds us: “Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.” Psalm 30:5 (NLT)
So, this Thanksgiving, by all means, thank God for the food on your table, the people around you, the blessings you can see, and the many good gifts He has given you. But perhaps also take a moment to thank Him for something deeper: that He is God, that He is good, that He is with you, and that His love will never let you go.
I am thankful for you and grateful that we get to walk this journey of faith together.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Grace & Peace, Ryan
With the Thanksgiving holiday just around the corner, many of us are becoming a little more mindful of the things we have to be grateful for. Around the Thanksgiving table, it is common for us to pause and thank God for our food, our family, our friends, our health, our homes, and the many other blessings that fill our lives. There is something beautiful about that simple practice of stopping long enough to recognize the goodness of God and to say, “Thank you.”
But I am also reminded that thanksgiving was never meant to be a once-a-year tradition. We don’t simply bring out thankfulness like our favourite Christmas decoration, enjoy it for a few weeks, and then put it away when the turkey is gone. Thanksgiving is meant to become a way of life. God desires to cultivate within us a heart that continually recognizes His goodness and responds with gratitude, not simply when life is going well, but even when life is difficult.
The Bible says: “Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18 (NLT)
Notice those words: “Be thankful in all circumstances.” Paul doesn’t say, “Give thanks when everything works out,” or “Give thanks when you get what you want,” or even “Give thanks because everything that happens is good.” He says, “Give thanks no matter what happens.”
But there is an important nuance to this. We are not necessarily called to be thankful for everything that happens, but we are called to give thanks in everything that happens. If I lose my wallet with $50 in it, I don’t have to pretend that losing my wallet is a blessing. But I can give thanks that I have a job and the ability to earn another $50. If I get into a car accident, I don’t have to be thankful for the accident, but I can be thankful that I wasn’t seriously injured and that God was with me through it.
But what about the really difficult things in life? What about the broken relationship, the financial pressure, the lost dream, the miscarriage, the diagnosis, the disappointment, or the death of someone we love? Am I really supposed to be thankful for those things? Honestly, I don’t think God asks us to call something good when it is painful or tragic. Scripture never asks us to deny our grief, suppress our sorrow, or pretend that everything is okay when it isn’t. Jesus Himself wept at the grave of Lazarus. The Psalms are filled with honest cries of pain and confusion. Faith doesn’t mean pretending that suffering doesn’t hurt.
But even in the midst of our pain, we can choose to give thanks. We can give thanks because God is still with us and He promises to never leave or forsake us. We can give thanks because God sees us and He understands the depth of our sorrow. We can give thanks because God’s character has not changed and He is able to bring beauty from our ashes.
This kind of thanksgiving is different. It is deeper than simply being grateful when life is good. It is the kind of gratitude that is rooted not in our circumstances but in the character of God. I love the phrase from Ann Voskamp’s One Thousand Gifts: “Thanksgiving comes before the miracle.” There is something powerful about choosing gratitude before we know how the story is going to end. Sometimes giving thanks is an act of faith. We are saying, “God, I don’t understand this. I don’t know what You are doing. I wish this were different. But I still believe You are good, and I choose to trust You.”
Maybe this Thanksgiving finds you in a difficult season. Maybe you have lost a job, lost a loved one, lost a dream, experienced a disappointment, or are carrying a burden that few people know about. Maybe while others are gathering around tables filled with laughter and celebration, your heart feels a little heavier than usual. If that is you, I want to remind you that you don’t have to manufacture happiness to give thanks. You simply need to remember who God is.
Your Father in heaven sees you. He knows you and He loves you. He is close to the broken-hearted and His grace is sufficient for you. Your difficult season may last longer than you hoped, but it will not last forever. The God who has carried you this far will continue to carry you. And even when you cannot yet see the morning, you can trust that the darkness will not have the final word. As the Psalmist reminds us: “Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.” Psalm 30:5 (NLT)
So, this Thanksgiving, by all means, thank God for the food on your table, the people around you, the blessings you can see, and the many good gifts He has given you. But perhaps also take a moment to thank Him for something deeper: that He is God, that He is good, that He is with you, and that His love will never let you go.
I am thankful for you and grateful that we get to walk this journey of faith together.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Grace & Peace, Ryan