Always be thankful?

[Mercy]

I have this friend who gets hung on the idea that we should always give thanks to God (He says that with some sarcastic tone) no matter what happens. I am having a difficult time convincing him since he's been through some hardship that I haven't experienced.

For ex. I recently cut my finger with a chainsaw. I thanked God that my finger was not severed. He added that I said that because my finger wasn't cut off. What if it was cut off? I replied by saying I am not sure how I would act, but giving thanks might not be the very first thing that comes to mind. But later on I might feel that "The Lord gives, but the Lord takes away". I think it would take time for someone to give thanks in the midst of hardship. But I can't seem to be able to convey the idea that we are human who experience emotions and sometimes it takes time to heal and reflect. I can't seem to purge his "hatred" towards God because he also lost someone dearly in the past.

He expresses that only those who have great faith (higher level of faith) can give thanks like that. And this act of "giving thanks" just doesn't apply to him because he considers himself "weak". And he uses the excuse that he's weak on a lot of other matters such as his anger issues and other things.

What do I do?

[neo-x]

the people who are really thankful to God, dont have to shout it out in front of others. I seldom even pray for food, but that does not mean Im not thankful, I feel grateful to God for everything he has given me. It has to do with faith but it does not mean we try to thank god when we dont feel like it. There's no pretense in faith, if you are thankful be honest about it, if you dont feel like thanking god, just be honest about it, and pray. You don't have to push yourself to make you feel thankful. Dont reason around it.

[Jac3510]

I would also suggest that while we are always to be thankful, that does not mean we are to be thankful for everything. We aren't to thank God for evil. We thank God for what He will do with the evil (cf. Rom 8:28, etc.). The prayer, consciously or not, is often something along the lines of, "Lord, I thank You that You are are the kind of God who has taken/are taking/will take this hopeless situation and bring hope to it."

For a biblical example, see Joseph. He wasn't thankful that he was sold into slavery, but he was certainly thankful that God used that evil event to bring about a great good. The emphasis, then, is on God's sovereignty and graciousness--His amazing ability and desire to bring good out of evil. It is not on the evil itself.

[PeteSinCA]

1 Thessalonians 5:18: "in everything give thanks". I realize it's an English translation, but it says "in", not "for". Seriously, who could give thanks for having cancer or some other personal disaster (or something evil, as Jac points out). But we can be thankful that God will bring us through "stuff" and redeem it in our lives, if we let Him. And we may sometimes see that He did so. I didn't love having to have a brain tumor removed, but it was a key event in God moving us from a church where we didn't fit to the church we were at for almost 20 years. It all but broke my heart when my then 2YO daughter lost her hair due to a 6-month course of chemotherapy, but God preserved her life, and she is a missionary through YWAM. That time certainly drove my wife and I toward God and toward each other!

So ... the verse is "in", not "for" ... and doing so is undeniably tough ... and undeniably edifying, if we learn that lesson. But I can't reach inside another person's brain and readjust their attitude. Such work belongs to the Holy Spirit.

[1over137]

1 Thessalonians 5:18: "in everything give thanks". I realize it's an English translation, but it says "in", not "for". Seriously, who could give thanks for having cancer or some other personal disaster (or something evil, as Jac points out). But we can be thankful that God will bring us through "stuff" and redeem it in our lives, if we let Him. And we may sometimes see that He did so. I didn't love having to have a brain tumor removed, but it was a key event in God moving us from a church where we didn't fit to the church we were at for almost 20 years. It all but broke my heart when my then 2YO daughter lost her hair due to a 6-month course of chemotherapy, but God preserved her life, and she is a missionary through YWAM. That time certainly drove my wife and I toward God and toward each other!

So ... the verse is "in", not "for" ... and doing so is undeniably tough ... and undeniably edifying, if we learn that lesson. But I can't reach inside another person's brain and readjust their attitude. Such work belongs to the Holy Spirit.

Similarly, it was no fun to be in hospital, being imo misdiagnosed, being fed with whatever what, being in for me horrible environment, and then so desperate that my life was hanging on a thread and well, i will say it, twice tried to take my own life. Thanks God I am still here. And yeah, through this I gained many things, strength included.