Written by Jenna, Contributing Writer
As we approach this season of thankfulness, I find myself in awe of God’s goodness to me. I have so much to be thankful for in my life. There’s my wonderful husband, my healthy, strong sons, God and his Word, friends and family, food, shelter and so on. I truly am blessed.
But at this time, it is evident that people are hurting. Just in my small circle of relationships, people are experiencing pain, loss and hardship. How do we then respond to those hurting?
To the sweet friend who is struggling with an uncontrollable son…
To the girl who recently lost her job and is now experiencing financial burdens…
To the women who are unable to conceive and so desperately want a child…
To the man who is living paycheck to paycheck, trying to pay child support while only seeing his children 4 days a month…
To the dear friend who will encounter the anniversary date of losing her baby girl this month 7 years ago…
What do we say then?
God is still on the throne.
Read Revelation 4. If we as believers lose sight of Christ on the throne, life becomes very sketchy and it almost becomes more about us than Him. Remember that thrones are places of authority, power and majesty. I love this reminder from Mark Driscoll, pastor of Mars Hill Church…
“When you see Jesus seated on his Throne, that’s why he is here; he’s a King who’s ruling over all of creation, which is his Kingdom. He is a judge who renders us all as sinful and guilty, he’s also a Priest who gets off of his Throne and dies for our sin to forgive us and mediates between us and the Father. And he’s a great warrior through whose death on the cross, Satan, sin and death have been conquered and we have victory.”
So through tumultuous times we can be assured that our God is infinitely in control.
We should model our outlook on thankfulness by Christ’s example.
Let’s look at His example in Luke 22…
“Then he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. Then he said, ‘Take this and share it among yourselves. For I will not drink wine again until the Kingdom of God has come’. He took some bread and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, ‘This is my body, which is given for you. Do this to remember me.'”
Jesus said these words just a short time before he knowingly would be mocked, beaten, and eventually murdered. And yet being aware of all of this, he still gave thanks. This does not undermine the hard circumstances we may face in life, but how reassuring is it to know that since Jesus found it in him to give thanks at such a horrible time, we certainly can too.
“There was majesty in the misery… glory in the shame”. — Spurgeon
But I remember questioning…
Because Christ suffered too.
“The Lord has given and the Lord has taken away; Blessed be the name of the Lord.”
Jenna is a happy wife to Brian and a full-time mom to 4 boys. She is a follower of Christ, a researcher and an aspiring blogger, foodie and lover of all things healthy.
Join her at Wholesome Bits and connect with her on Facebook.
*Linked to: Women Living Well, Homemaking Linkup, Traditional Tuesdays, Titus 2sdays, Works for Me, Simple Lives Thursday, Encourage One Another
Jenna, you have blessed me with this post tremendously. It took me well into my adult years to be thankful for the pain in my/our lives. I did not learn this lesson until Greg had his seizures, and experienced the extreme physical issues that God led him through. I am SO thankful for the lessons learned..that God alone is my rock, not my sweet, beloved husband. I am thankful for the lessons of how to accept help from friends….to be on the receiving end instead of the giving end, and to do it graciously! There are so many more ways, but I learned to praise Him in the pain! Isn’t it a glorious lesson to learn? Love you much, Jenna.
Becky
Becky, I am so thankful for the Lord and His Word and how they give us peace. Where would all of us be in this world without them? So thankful for the reassurance of Christ on His throne even on this day. I’m so thankful for you and the body of Christ. Love you too!!!
Jenna,this is so beautiful. You are so right. This touched my heart. There have been many tough times, but without them I would not be where I am today. As long as I rely on God, and Christ on the throne I know I can get through anything. I wrote a post last month about rejoicing and praise even when things are tough.
Have A Blessed Day.
Debi
Thank you, Debi! Yes, I don’t know how people without the Lord do it. I’m so thankful for our salvation and Christ’s perfect example to follow 🙂