Giving thanks in all
Circumstances
" So I went forth, and finding the Hand of God, trod gladly into the night.'
Morris West summed it all up in The Shoes of the Fisherman : " It costs so much to be a full human being that there are very few who have the enlightenment or the courage, to pay the price...One has to abandon altogether the search for security and reach out to the risk of living with both arms. One has to embrace the world like a lover. One has to accept pain as a condition of existence. One has to court doubt and darkness as the cost of knowing. One needs a will stubborn in conflict, but apt always to total acceptance of every circumstance of living and dying."
How does one go about doing this, which to those not gifted with the healing power of faith, would seem to be an utter impossibility ? The following story will illustrate this point:
Maureen who was a widow with three children, ran a very successful business in the city of Galway. Since one of these children needed constant medical attention and was unable to help in the running of the business, it was imperative that she make sure his future be amply provided for. This necessitated the extension of the leasehold on her premises which otherwise on its expiry, would revert to the government. She needed an extra 25 years.
In fact she was desperately anxious in this area and was pinning her hopes on finding someone who might be able to facilitate her. And so, never having heard of the Bible injunction "Do not lean on an arm of flesh "she approached five separate Government Ministers with this intention in mind but all efforts in every possible direction, proved abortive.
In a state of utter dejection she returned home. Remembering our conversation at her home on the previous Saturday night, she fell on her knees in front of her favourite picture of Jesus, and against her better instincts, she assured Him that she knew that this was His plan, and even with a deep pain in her heart, she was determined to accept this outcome and to
GIVE THANKS
as well - in abundance. Her prayer was: thank you Lord that things are not going my way but yours.
Next morning a man walked into her shop in order to buy some parts for his car. One of her employees beckoned her aside and assured her that he was an engineer of signal distinction and suggested that she confide in him with regard to the leasehold. "What have I to lose" she said and she then told him the whole story.
To cut a long story short, her prayer was answered in three weeks. She did not get an extension for 25 years. She got the extension for life. Such is the power of faith with thanksgiving.
My own experience has proved that under such circumstances, not only does God work the miracle, but He backs it up with a bonus as well! Have the wisdom to accept EVERYTHING from His hand; thank Him for the fact that things are going His way and not yours and then LET HIM ACT.' Be always joyful; pray continually; give thanks whatever happens; for this is what God wills for you.'
AND SO,ONE THESSALONIANS 5 - I6, I7, I8 WOULD BE ETCHED INDELIBLY ON THE LANDSCAPE OF HER MIND
for all time.
"Be strong, be brave, and do not be afraid of the king of Assyria or his mighty army, for there is someone who is far greater than he is. He has a great army, but we have our God to help us fight our battles."
( 2 Chronicals. Chapter 32 - verse 7 ).
'And I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year
Give me a light that I may tread safely into a place of the unknown,
And he replied,
'Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the Hand Of God. That shall be to you better than light and
SAfER THAN A KNOWN WAY '
So I went forth, and finding the Hand of God, trod gladly into the night.'
Minnie Louise Hoskins
Praise the Lord! Yes, really praise Him! I will praise Him as long as I live, yes, even with my dying breath. Don't look to men for help; their greatest leaders fail; for every man must die. His breathing stops, life ends and in a moment all he planned for himself is ended. But happy is the man who has the God of Jacob as his helper, whose hope is in the Lord his God - the God who made both earth and heaven , the seas and everything in them. He is the God who keeps every promise and gives justice to the poor and oppressed, and food to the hungry. He frees the prisoners and opens the eyes of the blind, He lifts the burdens from those bent down beneath their loads. For the Lord loves good men. He protects the immigrants, and cares for the orphans and widows. But He turns topsy- turvy, the plans of the wicked.
The Lord will reign forever. O Jerusalem, your God is King in every generation!
Hallelujah! Praise the Lord!
Psalm 146.
For a swimmer the way to be lifted on top of the wave is to dive under it. For a Christian the way to be lifted on top of a problem is to thank and praise God for it. Praise is spiritual dynamite. It has an explosive quality. Released into life, it revolutionises everything it touches.
Two people with the same problem; one gloomy and the other joyous. One centres his attention on the problem and the other on Jesus.
Trial of God
Praise Him!
To bless God
in the trial
is the secret.
It is a powerful prayer.
See Phil. chapter 4- verses 6 and 19.
"Thanks are the highest form of thought".
G.K.Chesterton.
"Thank you and forgive me!" the favourite prayer of Saint George Preca - the Maltese saint.
Everything is encapsulated in those five words.
"God is love. God is the God of love and peace. Where there is peace, there is God. Why ? Because since He is the God of peace he will NEVER inspire thoughts of worry - not even worry for your sins. Take your sins and offer them to God with humility. He will offer you His love and peace. If you fall into sin it is a sign that somewhere in your life there is PRIDE. God's help is obstructed by PRIDE".
(St. George Prega).
Let nothing disturb you / let nothing affright you / all things are changing / God only is changeless / patient endurance attaineth to all things / Alone, God sufficeth. St. Theresa of Avila.
There is a world of difference between joy and pleasure. Pleasure can be planned. Joy cannot be planned. It comes unexpectedly, and is all the sweeter for that. Pleasure is immediate. Joy often comes later, and the sweetest joy of all is that which follows pain. Pleasure comes from saying 'yes' to ourselves. Joy comes from saying 'no' to ourselves. Pleasure is like a flare in the night : it brightens things up for a while, but when it is over we feel darker and emptier than ever. Joy, on the other hand, is like a bright fire in the hearth ; even when it dies down, it leaves a warm glow behind it.
Anita Kilbride-Jones,
Saint Paul's Bay, Malta.
