In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. 1 Thess. 5:18 (NKJV)
While this is the verse most often quoted in this season of thanksgiving I would submit it is also the verse most misunderstood. And in a year where it seems everyone has endured at least some measure of challenge, it is almost assured that this verse will be used to say we should be thankful for the very things that are most painful.
But notice what word Paul does not use to start that verse: for. Wait, what? You mean Paul is not saying we are to give thanks for everything? That is correct. You see, there is a big difference between saying we are to be thankful FOR everything and saying we are to be thankful IN everything. Even more than you and I have to endure, Paul himself went through a number of extremely difficult and trying circumstances (many of which were referenced in our recent series from 2 Corinthians) and while he eventually matured to a place where he could be grateful for those experiences, he was not writing to a new church going through much persecution in order to communicate how they should be grateful for their persecution.
Instead, this verse was intended to communicate that even in a broken world full of painful experiences the Church had something, yes even someone to be grateful for. Paul came to be thankful for his circumstances because he first learned to be thankful in his circumstances. Because this was Paul’s reality he could encourage the church to have that same mind.
So what can we be thankful for in the midst of all things, even in the pain that is all too familiar? For those who are in Christ we can be thankful for our salvation (Psalm 27:1). We can be thankful for eternal life, something far greater than even the very best our present life can provide (1 John 5). We can be thankful for the steadfast love of the Lord (Lamentations 3:22-23), and the sustaining word of the Lord (Hebrews 1:3). We can be thankful for the persevering grace of the Lord (2 Corinthians 12:8-9) and the sovereign presence of the Lord (Joshua 1:9). These things are true in the best of times, and they are true in the worst of times.
Can we be thankful for the pain? Absolutely: but only as it reminds us of something far greater being produced in us, an eternal weight of glory.
In everything give thanks.
~~ Tim Wilson