“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
We live in stressful, uncertain, and discontented times. On a large scale, many are stressed about the death toll of COVID-19, the unintended consequences government spending will have on the economy, and how life will be different moving forward; what kind of world will be left for our children and their children? On a smaller scale, many have lost their jobs, are struggling to lead their children in education with the schools closed, and they cannot even leave their house very much; there are no more vacations, outings, or meals with friends. How do we deal with all of our pent up stress and anxiety? Rejoice. Pray. Give thanks.
These three things are intimately connected in this passage from 1 Thessalonians 5. We have plenty of reasons to be grieved at this time. Some of those reasons are listed above. I am sure that there are plenty of other reasons that cause you much sorrow that is not even related to our world’s current events. Our remedy for the stress and grief at this time? Rejoicing. What better to calm our souls than to remember that in these crazy times we have a profound reason to be filled with joy. What is sweeter than knowing Jesus, that He died for our sins and reigns over the world and His church. This is a cause for joy. So, how ought we express that joy?
Pray without ceasing! Though joy is mixed with happiness, sorrow, or struggle we have access to God through Christ and by the indwelling power of the Spirit of God. Oh, how joy should propel us to pray to our God. When we come before our God, He gives us grace in every circumstance. He is ever ready to meet with His people for spiritual blessing (Hebrews 4:14-16). We ought not to leave behind such benefits by being slow to pray. As one hymn says: “What a friend we have in Jesus / All our sins and griefs to bear / And what a privilege to carry / Everything to God in prayer.” Friends, with joy, let us pray without ceasing. But, let us also do this with thanksgiving.
For whos will is better, God’s or our own? It is easy these days to murmur complaints. It might feel briefly satisfying to give into a little discontentment and just vent about how frustrated we are. It is a temptation we all feel these days. Thanksgiving is the remedy for our frustration. When we, with joy and constant prayer, express thanksgiving to the Lord in our circumstances, the Lord satisfies us with His will. Knowing our good, gracious, and wise God, and our blessed communion with Christ, we can joyfully submit to God’s will with thanksgiving. Though circumstances are hard, and the Lord does hear our cries, we ought to always treat His will with thanksgiving.
Finally, “this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” I will leave everyone with a quote from John Calvin at this point. Calvin’s words on this small phrase brought much joy to my heart, lead me to prayer, and filled me with thanksgiving for our God. I hope it blesses you as well. Calvin said: “God has such a disposition towards us in Christ, that even in our afflictions we have a large occasion of thanksgiving. For what is fitter or more suitable for pacifying us, than when we learn that God embraces us in Christ so tenderly, that he turns to our advantage and welfare everything that befalls us? Let us, therefore, bear in mind, that this is a special remedy for correcting our impatience — to turn away our eyes from beholding present evils that torment us, and to direct our views to a consideration of a different nature — how God stands affected towards us in Christ.”