No Matter What

“Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

~1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

I call these verses God’s marching orders for each of us. The will of God in Christ is for us to rejoice, pray and give thanks always and without ceasing. How many of us actually do that? From the shape of things, not many, at least not always and without ceasing. We tend to look at our circumstances and pray when we need God to lend a hand. We tend to rejoice and give thanks when God answers that prayer or handles that need. But that isn’t the way God wants us to do things. He wants us to look to Him and not our circumstances. He wants us to rejoice in every situation, pray without ceasing, and give thanks in every circumstance, which includes those we’d rather not be in.

“Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving (Colossians 2:6-7).”

When we accept Christ as our Savior, we are given an unimaginable gift of everlasting life, eternal and full of glory. As we live our lives rooted in Christ, that is, to accept the fullness of the Word of God and practice it in our daily lives, we become rooted in what Jesus teaches. From that we abound in thanksgiving that flows from our hearts onto everything else in our lives. So we can be thankful in every situation knowing that our present circumstances are of no real concern. We are subject to life’s ups and downs, just like everyone else but because of who we are in Christ Jesus, we can rejoice in all things, pray without ceasing, and give thanks no matter what our circumstances look like.

“Therefore, do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ (Ephesians 5:17-21).”

Read 1 Peter 1-2

© 2018 Marie McGaha