Paul’s Advice

Paul’s Advice

Q: According to Paul, when should you be thankful?

• a. when God blesses you
• b. when life is good
• c. in all circumstances

In the United States, Thanksgiving Day has just passed. Families have their own traditions for this day, which may include anything from Scripture reading to watching football games or home movies. They gather and celebrate with a large meal and by spending time together.

God doesn’t plan for his people to limit their thankfulness to one day a year, though. He says to be thankful in all circumstances. That doesn’t mean you have to be thankful for the bad things that happen. No one would expect you to be thankful for them, but it’s important to still be thankful for God’s salvation, his work in your life, and how he might use the bad things for his own good during those times.

The apostle Paul gives three commands in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18: Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances. Doing those things may not come easily. It’s easy to complain about circumstances and let them get you down. You will have to remind yourself to react in a new way. If you can learn to do those three things, it will change your life.

For You

Several things you should do each day are listed in 1 Thessalonians 5. Start in verse 11 with “encourage each other and build each other up” and see how many of them you can find. Try to live out two each day.

Answer: c

Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.   1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

(The Whole Story: 1 Thessalonians 5:11-22)