It’s very easy to thank someone for a good deed or a good word toward us. It’s common curtesy, or otherwise called manners. In the same way it is super easy to thank God for a good moment in my life or a good surprise that came along because in my mind, I see it as something positive. But what about the hard things that come along, the tough situations? Even such as the pandemic that is touching us all, the COVID-19 outbreak?
It is even more important in these difficult moments to give thanks to God. He wants me to still come to Him and examine those tough situations, look for good in them, and thank Him for it all. Not always, though, do I find a good thing in a hard situation right away. Then I must thank the Lord for the situation in general, trusting that He will bring some sort of good out of it and that there is a reason why He is allowing it, even though we might not understand why at the moment. This thanksgiving even in tough situations helps us practice our trust and humility in God.
Look at Joseph from the Old Testament. The one with the colored cloak. The one with the “wicked” brothers who bullied him, threw him into a deep hole in the ground, wanted to kill him, and eventually sold him as a slave. And that was not the end of his “hard times”. Forced into Egyptian slavery, he had to work hard and even then was falsely accused of several things and had to “rot” in jail for this. His life was anything but a blessing at this point one could say. And yet, God had a purpose for it. And it wasn’t obvious until decades later when Joseph worked his way up to the pharaoh’s right hand man. God allowed all of those horrible things to happen in order to use Joseph for a bigger purpose in the future and help feed people in the time of a great famine, and save his starving family, too. If he had the most loving brothers earlier on, who catered to him at every beg and plea, he would have never ended up in Egypt. If he wasn’t accused of the wrongdoings as a slave and spent several years in prison, he would have never met the Pharaoh and became his best advisor. God has His Ways. And as He says in Isaiah, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the Lord.” (Isaiah 55:8)
So as the Word of God shows, God knows best. But do I trust Him? Do I still thank him humbly for everything that happens to me that is out of my control? Because guess who is in control? He is! And I may not see why for a long time, or even ever in my lifetime. But there is a greater purpose.
Lord, please help me be a Joseph of my time. Let me trust you and be thankful for everything you are putting in my way, whether I understand it or not. Lord, I do believe in you, help my unbelief, and help me trust more fully in Your Mercy and Divine Providence. Amen.
Marta Sniezko
