Give thanks for everything, trusting that even your deepest struggles and sorrows are part of God’s perfect plan for his glory.
Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada. Paul tells us in Ephesians 5, to give “thanks to the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” For everything? How I have wrestled with those words! But the Bible says we’re not only to give thanks for the good stuff and the happy moments, but for those hurtful, crushing, heart-breaking, out-of-control happenings as well. He asks us here to see life from his point of view. The command begins with giving thanks to the father and it ends with the name of Jesus. In other words, all the events of our lives are book-ended by the father and the son. Everything that touches us comes from his hand. He sees how it all will fit together. He sees [right now] how you will one day be healed and how the tears, and the bruises, the setbacks, and sorrows of this life have worked for the glory of his name—and produced more good results in you than you can now begin to imagine. So, give thanks for everything.
© Joni and Friends