Why Should I Give Thanks In Bad Times?

I am sure you have heard fellow Christians as they complain bitterly about circumstances that are happening in their lives. They have problems with their children, spouses, work, homes, health issues and the list goes on and on. A favorite refrain is “Why did this happen to me?” or “Why did the Lord allow this to happen to me? I am a good person and I do His will.”

I see fellow Christians and even pastors struggle with this question when asked by other Christians who are experiencing difficult trials in their life. Especially when the difficulty is the loss of a young loved one who is a Christian and is well loved and respected. Although there is no way of telling which specific reason applies in any particular case, scripture does give us several reasons. But before I go on let me say this. When that question is asked about a Christian that’s died it surely ruffles my feathers.

The questions “Why would God allow this to someone so young?” And “Why was he cut short in the prime of his life?” implies that the person dying was being punished or that his/her dying is a terrible thing. Terrible for who? We are speaking of a Christian person here and he/she has moved on to a life that is so wonderful and full of joy and happiness that we can’t even imagine it. If they could come back, they wouldn’t want to. They are experiencing a relationship with God that is so satisfying and fulfilling that it is beyond anything we can even comprehend. So how is that terrible? The only thing a Christian should feel is a sense of sorrow for the brief time that person will be out of our lives until we meet him/her again in Glory.

Now let’s get back on track. Many times the things which are happening to us that we consider bad are referred to in the scriptures as trials, tribulations and even discipline. Consider the following passage in Hebrews 12:5-11:

5  You have forgotten the encouragement that is addressed to you as sons: “My son, do not think lightly of the Lord’s discipline or give up when you are corrected by him.  6 For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he punishes every son he accepts.”  7 What you endure is for the sake of discipline. God is treating you as sons. Is there a son whom his father does not discipline?  8 Now if you are without any discipline, in which all sons share, then you are illegitimate and not his sons.  … 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, for those who have been trained by it, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace.

A large part  of the difficulties we go through as Christians are allowed by God to come into our lives to correct, teach and train us, (discipline us) so that we may be conformed to the likeness of Jesus. Here are a few more verses that will add to the above and give further details:

Jas 1:2-4

My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

Rom 5:3-4

And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.

Below is a list taken from the passages above that give us some of the things to be thankful for during difficult times.

1. Heb12: 6 – The Lord only disciplines those He loves. So it shows that He loves us. Along those same lines, if we are not being disciplined then we are not His children and are not saved. See verse 8 “if you are without discipline, in which all sons share, then you are illegitimate and not His sons.” So we give thanks because our discipline confirms to us that we are His sons.
2. Heb12:11 – Even though we may not understand it or see it at the time, the difficulty we are going through will produce righteousness and peace in us if we allow it to.
3. Jas 1:2-4 – It produces patience which moves you towards perfection and completeness
4. Rom 5:3-4 – It produces perseverance, character and Hope.

What I am saying here is that everything you go through in life has been filtered and allowed by God. Some experiences will give you joy and happiness in the moment and some will build and grow you into better Christians. As Christians we grow during adversity and without it we would be stagnant. How can you learn to depend on God and grow in faith if you never go through experiences where you have to lean on Him?

I can tell you from personal experience that as you go through each experience you would be wise to get on your knees and ask God to reveal to you the truths that He wants you to learn because when you don’t learn it, that lesson will come again and the more you resist the harder the experiences will get until you learn.

Sometimes you may go through an experience that’s not designed for your growth but is designed to increase the faith of others looking on, to see how you deal with it or to bring non-believers to Christ as they see God glorified in your handling of the situation and in the results. Sometimes the results are obviously impossible to have been accomplished by you and so it becomes obvious that God is at work as was the case when Jesus rose Lazarus  from the dead: Joh. 11:4  When Jesus heard that, He said, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”  Or In John 9:1-7 where Jesus told his disciples that the blind man that he was about to heal was not blind because of his or his parents sin but was blind so that Jesus could heal Him and thereby show God’s glorious power and works.

This demonstrates yet another reason to give thanks as we see that through it all, God’s power, works, compassion and love will come shining through and be obvious to all Christians and non-believers and will result in the furtherance of His Kingdom.

Another reason for giving thanks is that God sees the big picture and we don’t. The very thing that we are crying about today may be what we will be thankful for in the future. A good example of this in scriptures is seen in the life of Joseph. As a boy he was sold into slavery by his own brothers who were so jealous of him. Today, as well as back then we would be horrified that such a thing happened and would be questioning God as to why He would allow such a thing to happen. God was however beginning Joseph’s training, a process that would later make him the second most powerful man in Egypt. This gave him the authority that he would need to save His brothers’ lives, (the same ones who sold him into slavery) and bring his family to Egypt which fulfilled prophecy as a result and became the place where Israel and his family grew into a nation.

I tell you, when you learn to give thanks in everything, even under the most difficult of circumstances, you will find joy, peace, and contentment. You will discover that you can have joy and the peace that passes all understanding and will realize one of the Mysteries of God that allows you to have abundant life even in the most miserable of circumstances.

In His Service,

Frank Vernon