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Be Thankful

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This past month, but mostly this past weekend, we looked at the following verse with the 4th and 5th graders at my church:

“Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”  - 1 Thessalonians 5:18 NIV

When we look at Paul's life, we see this verse in a different light. Paul is not just telling the Thessalonians to be thankful because it's a good thing to do. Paul is writing these words after going through some rough times.

At the beginning of his ministry he wasn't very well received. Paul, known as Saul at the time, was killing and persecuting followers of Jesus trying to eradicate the last bits of the ministry of Jesus. Then one day he was on his way to get more people and he met Jesus on the way there. A light blinded him and he had to be escorted to town. Paul then began to preach the gospel and the people were shocked. But they couldn't believe that he had changed. So they ran him out of town. [1]

Paul would then begin his ministry taking many trips, started many churches and taken 3 missionary journeys. Paul had been beaten, whipped, imprisoned and ran out of towns.

It was in the end of his second missionary journey that he founded the church of Thessalonica and wrote this letter and the words "give thanks in all circumstances". Paul had been through so much already (and he was not even half way done) and he could still write the words "give thanks in all circumstances".

Paul was writing these words as the closing remarks to his letter to the church. The people probably had heard what Paul had been through and these words would have been a little shocking to them. But Paul knew that God was in control and that it would all work out. God had gotten him through so much over his journey that he could write those words with confidence.

God wants the same for us. The words that Paul wrote were from God (2 Timothy 3:16) and God wants us to know that whatever troubles we face, we can face with the confidence that God will help us through them.

Not only help us through them - but walk with us through them.
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[1] Acts 9
This post references the book of Acts throughout.
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