Being Grateful Through Storms

A Hope That Is Everlasting

Psalms 126:3 " The Lord has done great things for us; we are glad."

Psalms 118:24 "This is the day which the LORD has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it."

Ruth 2:10 "Then she fell on her face, bowing to the ground and said to him, "Why have I found favor in your sight that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?"

Colossians 3:17 "Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father."

Psalms 107: 1-3 "Praise the LORD! Oh give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; For His loving kindness is everlasting. Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the adversary And gathered from the lands, From the east and from the west, From the north and from the south."

Hebrews 11:28 "Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe"

Acts 17:28 "For “‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, “‘For we are indeed his offspring.’"

Philippians 4:6-7 " Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

1st Timothy 6:17-19 "As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life."

The Thankful Orphan

There is a little boy named Thomas

He is only nine

He carries around a heavy burden

But he smiles, as if he's fine

When his parents were around

They were playful, loving, kind

But After their tragic death

His memories changed to

"Once upon a time."

He was four and at his daycare

When he heard the news

At first he was angry and confused

But soon he began to understand

The awful hurting truth

The city came and took him

From the home they all

Had once lived in

A woman wiped his tears away

Then said,

"Now your new life can begin."

His heart was breaking

Piece by piece

As they drove away

A memory he still

Carries around

Every single day

He went from home to home

Faking happiness was tough

And slowly he began to believe

He would never be enough

One day came around

When he was moved to his new "home"

And the "parents" their could tell

By just his eyes,

That something was very wrong.

So they sat him down

And lovingly asked, " Please, will you

Tell us what is wrong?"

He just broke down into tears

Saying what he had

Kept inside for so long.

"My name is Thomas.

I have just turned nine

I miss my parents deeply,

But I smile, as if I'm fine.

My heart, it hurts so much.

Sometimes, I want to die,

I want some one to love me,

I act happy, but it's all a lie.

"When my parents were around

They were playful, loving, kind

But now that they are dead and gone...

I have no one to call mine."

He stayed with them for 6 months,

They showed him love, and he

Began to love them too

They made wonderfully happy moments

So they knew exactly what they had to do

Thomas has finally been adopted

The man and wife are

Very kind and nice

They love him, like he is their own

So he can peacefully

Live his Life

In life, there are times when everything seems to go wrong. We often times only feel grateful for things, when things are going right. We tend to be ungrateful when things are harder and when life is tougher on us. Some times we can carry around long burdens and hurt for years, making it hard to be thankful. It's like all you can see is darkness, and the small light in the distance just gets further and further away, the longer you are in agony.

But even in the worse of times, we see examples of many different people in scripture who are thankful and grateful, not only in the good times, but even at their lowest. They are seen praising God, through their storms, Worshiping him when afflicted, singing to him while they are in prison. And these kind of actions, well they can seem bewildering and astonishing to us and even more to unbelievers. Leaving us asking ourselves and wondering, How? and Why? What can possibly make someone rejoice when they are stuck or in pain or frustrated.

It's amazing really, let's first examine, How? How can you be grateful in the best and worse of times. Well it's not as hard as you would think, if you add God into the picture. With God, nothing is impossible, and everything is worth rejoicing over because for believers, their strong faith and God's mighty love, gives us something that unbelievers do not have, which is HOPE. Not only the kind of hope, that will pull you out of your struggle, but even more so, hope that even if you struggle until you die, God is with you through it all and even after it all. He is a rock that cannot and is not moved by our worldly matters and afflictions. His steadfast promises and love for us is everlasting, no matter what we may be going through.

Next comes the question Why? Why be grateful, Why sing and worship, and give God praise when we are at our lowest or in deep suffering? Well, honestly there are many reasons... As a believer when we worship God and give him the glory, we do it out of love for him, and loving him admits our storms, somehow, fills up our hearts with gratitude, it shows us blessings we have taken before for granted, it makes us strong, warriors in and through Christ, and more so warriors for Christ. Besides, something unbelievers will never quite fully understand is the happiness and peace that comes with God's promises to us even in our sufferings.

"As believers, we must strong knowing our reward will be in Heaven, and we look towards the future, and our new life and creation through Christ. Because of God's steadfast love, promises, and peace through sufferings and trials, we can have hope in a new beginning."

Prayer For Today

Father God, who art in Heaven, Holy be your name,

I just want to give thanks to you today for all the blessings you have bestoyed on me through this life. I am blessed mostly because you are the kind of God that you are, and I live in the hope of your promises and love for me. You are the greatest gift in this life and I plan to worship you even when I am hurt or persecuted. I do this because I love you, in return, and I desire to give you all the glory. Praise be your name.

In Jesus Christ Name, Amen