Tomorrow in the United States and Canada people will be celebrating an annual day of thanks. Most Americans associate Thanksgiving with the 1621 harvest feast shared by the English colonists (Pilgrims) of Plymouth and the Wampanoag people. People often travel long distances to be with their families for this special occasion, and it is estimated that 117 American adults plan to travel for the holiday.
“Words from Above” in the Bible tell us that the apostle Paul said in I Thessalonians 5 that it is God’s will that in everything His followers need to give thanks. It is actually amazing that Paul would say such a thing when we consider all the hardships and difficulties that he endured because he preached the gospel of Jesus. This is also amazing when we realize that before Paul became a preacher of the gospel, he was a strong persecutor of the Christian faith. He went out of his way to search for those who were believers in the Christian faith, and sought to arrest them and also execute them. He believed that they were living contrary to the Jewish faith in which he was raised, and was not willing to tolerate them for doing so.
Paul suffered the same degree of opposition to his efforts to preach the gospel as what he himself inflicted on those who believed it themselves. In II Corinthians 11 he gives a detailed list of some of the things he suffered as a result of preaching the gospel. He said that Jewish religious leaders on five different occasions subjected him to be whipped with thirty-nine lashes, three times he was beaten with rods, once he was stoned and left for dead, three times he was shipwrecked and spent a night and a day in the sea. He experienced perils in his travels at the hands of robbers, by the heathen of his day, by false brethren, and by his own countrymen. He suffered such perils in various cities, in wilderness areas, and on the sea. He suffered pain and weariness, hunger and thirst, severe cold, and inadequate clothing.
In I Corinthians 10, Paul makes the point that it is not uncommon at all for believers to be tested in ways like he was tested, but through it all God is faithful in coming to their aid. He points out that God does not allow believers to be tested beyond what they are able to bear, and that God will actually help them get through these tests and make a way for them to over come them and escape from them. For all these reasons, we can always in all things give God thanks.
Larry R. Steffee is pastor of the Center Hill Brethren In Christ Church on Miller Road in Smithville. Everyone is welcome to attend. For information, you may email lrsteffeetn@yahoo.com.
