Readings for today: 2 Thessalonians 1-3
We are heading into Thanksgiving week. If your family is like mine, you have adult children flying in from all over the country or perhaps planning to drive down to spend the day. Multiple generations of our family will take time out of busy schedules to gather, fellowship, eat a great meal, and share why they are thankful. Of course, there are many who feel alone this year as well. My dad passed away almost two years ago and my mom is still feeling the loss. My brother never has married and holidays are hard for him. I know many who are divorced who experience loneliness this time of year. However, even in the hard moments during holidays, there is much to be thankful for. Health. Provision. Opportunity. Professional success. Our nation. The men and women who serve in our armed forces both domestic and abroad. Those who serve as first responders in our communities. Most of all, our faith.
The Apostle Paul was a thankful man. We see it over and over again in his letters. He thanks God for just about every single church. He thanks God for just about every single brother and sister in Christ. He is thankful for the ways he sees God at work in their midst. Amidst hardship. Persecution. Division. He thanks God for His miracles. He thanks God for His blessings. He thanks God for the grace He has lavished on us in Jesus Christ. And when one reads Paul’s letters, we might be tempted to think life was pretty good for Paul. He must have had it okay. He must have never faced struggles or temptations or wrestled with anxieties and fears. Of course, nothing could farther from the truth.
Paul suffered throughout the course of his life. Especially after becoming a Christian. He worked long hours. He was imprisoned. Subject to death threats. Five times he received 40 lashes. Three times beaten with rods. Once he was stoned and left for dead. Three times shipwrecked and at least one of those times he spent a day and night adrift at sea. He lived in constant danger on his travels. Not just from the elements or from the roving bands of highwaymen who often waylaid people on the road but from his own people. He often went sleepless. Often went hungry. Often suffered from exposure. He struggled with anxiety over his churches. Fears of their future. He did not live an easy life. And yet he was thankful.
How is it possible to be thankful in a world where death seems to lie around every corner. Cancer. Heart attacks. Strokes. I think about the earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, drought, wildfires, or famine over which we have so little control. The suffering these natural disasters create is enormous. I think about the life-threatening poverty around the world that I’ve seen. Men and women and children suffering from addiction. I think about the burdens I carry. Anxieties over the churches I serve. Fears for my own family. Uncertainty over the future. It’s enough to drive me mad.
God calls us to be thankful. I love what Paul says in 2 Thessalonians 1:3, “We ought to thank God always for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, since your faith is flourishing and the love each one of you has for one another is increasing.” Yes, there is much that is wrong in the world. Evil. Injustice. Oppression. These are real things that must be resisted at all costs. At the same time, God calls us to focus our attention on the people and places where faith is flourishing and love is increasing. This is what creates a heart of gratitude within us. When we see God at work and it’s why it’s so important for us to get involved in what He’s doing in the world.
Readings for tomorrow: Acts 18:19-28, 19:1-41