Have you ever prayed and prayed that God would change circumstances? And it seems that God isn’t listening? If anything, things get worse? I’m sure you have.

I’ve been there. You’ve been there. So where is God? Is He in any of this?

As we approach Thanksgiving Day, I want to suggest something strange. Even radical. Thank God. Thank God in the midst of the bad stuff. Take it a step further. Thank Him for the bad things.’

I know – you think I’ve lost my mind. How can I ever thank God for bad things. Is it even possible? I don’t know. Certainly some of the negative things in our lives are pretty severe. But I’m not advocating that God sent us the bad crud we deal with, or that we are thankful bad things happen.

I’m challenging you to realize that even when we don’t see the good, when we think God is far away, and that we may not be able to take any more, that God is still God. He is present even when we can’t see through our pain and grief. He is the one helping us make it even if we don’t realize it. He still loves us. He still can redeem our worst pain, and bring something good – for us, and for His will, out of the bad, and the sin of a fallen creation.

So this Thanksgiving, take a huge step of faith. Thank God for the good and the bad. The good because it blesses us. The bad because we become stronger in our faith through adversity.

In His Peace

Mike