What I read felt totally outlandish. How could it be true? A good friend has a mass on their chest. They go in for a biopsy on Thursday. A marriage is in trouble. A job was lost. Relationships are broken. A long-time friend died of a brain tumor. Loved ones are sick. People are in deep emotional pain.
Considering things like this, what I read seems impossible. And it isn’t even a suggestion. It is a command.
Always be joyful.Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus (I Thessalonians 5:16-18 NLT).
Be thankful in all circumstances?
I do believe God is for me and that His indwelling Spirit enables me to carry out what He commands. But to always be grateful is hard to imagine. How can it be?
How is it Possible to always be Grateful?
To be truly grateful in everything, I must pull my perspective away from my circumstances. I must realize that God has something far richer in mind for me than an easy, comfortable life.
From God’s word, here’s what I know:
I was created with deep longings which can only be satisfied by God Himself.[1]
Delighting in God, enjoying Him, loving Him, and praising Him, satisfies these deep longings. [2]
Pursuing things of this world to satisfy my soul leave me empty and headed for destruction.[3]
God uses all things for my greater benefit, according to His purposes, not mine.[4]
Above all things, God is at work to make me more and more like Jesus.[5]
Following Jesus means His character being formed in me, not by my efforts, but by dependence upon His Spirit within me.[6]
In Jesus’ endurance of the cross, He remained fixed upon God’s greater purposes, even during excruciating pain.
Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God (Hebrews 12:1-2 NASB).
On the cross, Jesus had Joy.
Relational Joy.
Fueled by His love for His Father and for us, joy strengthened Jesus through unbearable pain.
No matter what else is going on in our lives, the fact that Jesus, Lord of Lord and King of Kings, values us enough to lay down His life for our relationship with Him, should fill our hearts with overflowing gratitude. And gratitude draws us near to God, the source of all Joy.[7]
Gratitude, the Gateway to Relational Joy
If I’m bemoaning my circumstances, the eternal overshadowing joy of the Lord can never be experienced.
If I’m only measuring how I’m doing by how my life is going, I’ll tend to be ungrateful, and joy will be killed.
God is not absent from my pain. In fact, if I call upon Him, my Ever-Present Help in Trouble [8], His peaceful nearness cleanses and heals deep parts of my heart, untapped when circumstances are easy.
From personal experience, I’m fortified in my troubles when I turn to God for comfort and not the false affections of the world.
Our gratitude for the gifts God gives us, especially everlasting life with Him, invites our soul to develop a posture of thanksgiving. God is good and God is for us. The more we see this, and point everything back to Him in glorious thanksgiving and praise, joy will grow and spill over into rejoicing, come what may.
Practice It
Think about a present trouble in your life. It could be related to health, finances, relationships, busyness, or any number of difficulties in this broken world.
In the midst our very hard times, God invites us to call on Him as our Comforter in all we face.[9] He is for us. He is near to our broken hearts.[10]
As you receive the comfort of His nearness, thank Him. Thank Him for being with you and for the price He paid for your reconciliation. Realize that especially in your trials, He’s always at work to make you more and more like Jesus.
Ask Him to bring other things to your mind to be grateful for. Develop a habit of giving all thanks and glory to God.
As did Corrie Ten Boom, present all praise from others as fragrant offers back to God.
When people come up and give me a compliment… I take each remark as if it were a flower. At the end of the day I lift up the bouquet of flowers I have gathered throughout the day and say, ‘Here you are, Lord, it is all Yours.’” Corrie Ten Boom
Prayer
Lord, I’m sorry that I haven’t developed a regular rhythm of thanking You for everything in my life. The more I walk with you, the more I’m convinced that you are for me and that You are at work in every aspect of my life. Please help me thank you for the pleasant times and the heart aches.
Teach me to linger and savor Your life all around. Slow me down to pause and thank You at every turn.
Thank You for the way joy is unleashed when I have a heart of gratitude. When I’m thankful, the joy of my relationship with You explodes in my soul.
Please keep me focused on loving You, thanking You, and loving those You bring my way.
Amen.
[1] Ecclesiastes 3:11
[2] Psalm 37:4
[3] I Timothy 6:9, Matthew 6:19
[4] Romans 8:28
[5] Romans 8:29
[6] Galatians 4:19, Galatians 2:20
[7] Psalm 16:11
[8] Psalm 46:1-3
[9] II Corinthians 1:3-5
[10] Psalm 34:18
Please Check out the new Cola City Podcast . Discussions that impact the vision of reaching every man, woman, and child in the Midlands of South Carolina.
Joy in the Journey is about the gladness of God’s nearness in the midst of life’s adventures.
Subscribe below to get email notifications of new posts. We post a few times a month. Thank you for reading.
Novels by the Author:
Rob Buck
What happens when a professor figures out how to send messages to his younger self to try and avoid the suicide of his best friend? Did he change more than he bargained for? Beyond Time
By finding two undelivered letters in a old shack deep in the woods, Cassie and Daniel unknowing set off a series of events which uncover a plot to wipe out a whole family Hope Remains
Much has been written about folks communing with God and walking with Him throughout the day.
Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him (Genesis 5:24 NASB).
These are the records of the generations of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his generation. Noah walked with God (Genesis 6:9 NASB).
He guides me in the paths of righteousness For the sake of His name. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me (Psalm 23:3b-4a NASB).
Nevertheless I am continually with You; You have taken hold of my right hand. You will guide me with Your plan, And afterward receive me to glory (Psalm 73:23-24 NASB).
God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord (I Corinthians 1:9 NASB).
As amazing as it seems, having intimate fellowship with the Creator of the Universe is possible for us right now. As believers, Jesus Christ indwells us by His Holy Spirit. He is always with us, as close as breathe. But do we acknowledge Him as we go?
For me the answers is: sometimes. But I want to know Him more deeply and communicate with Him more consistently, not only in my set aside times alone with Him, but also throughout the day.
After all, our access to God has been paid for by the precious blood of Jesus, the Lamb of God, for the purpose of us experiencing eternal life, even now. And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent (John 17:3 NASB).
Knowing God. Walkingwith Him, having fellowship with Him, communing with Him is possible. Today. This moment.
But how?
Let’s look at a couple of rhythms for staying connected to God in true communion and fellowship.
Being Alone with Jesus
One way to take advantage of our direct pathway to God is to regularly set aside dedicated times of being alone with Him. These times, though they can also include reading God’s Words or songs of worship, can be considered times of prayer.
Unless we are simply going through the motions, which I sometimes do, true communication is happening during these times of being alone with Jesus.
But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you (Matthew 6:6 ESV).
Jesus often had these times of pulling away to isolate with His Father God.
And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, He departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed (Mark 1:35 NASB).
And when it was day, He departed and went into a desolate place. And the people sought Him and came to him, and would have kept him from leaving them (Luke 4:42 NASB).
But He would withdraw to desolate places and pray (Luke 5:16 NASB).
In these days he went out to the mountain to pray, and all night he continued in prayer to God (Luke 6:12 NASB).
The last verse tells us what Jesus did prior to selecting the twelve disciples.
Following are some suggested keys concerning our times alone with God which produce genuine communication.
Be as consistent with the time of day as possible. Mornings are good, but not necessary. If unexpected events occur, no worries. Take the time when it can be grabbed.
Treat the time alone with God as other scheduled meetings. Mark it off. Protect it. These are, by far, the most important meetings you have.
Have a regular format during these meetings, but allow the Holy Spirit to alter your plan. Suggested routines might include worship, times of silent listening (more on that later), consuming God’s word and responding to what God might be communicating to you.
Have a plan for reading God’s word, but be sure the amount doesn’t cause it to become dutiful. It’s not like homework, it’s delightful fellowship
Write down your worship, insights from God’s word and your response. A journal, dedicated to your times alone with God, works great for this.
Our entire time alone with God should be looked at as a time of communing prayer. If at times, your mind wonders into “get it done mode,” pause and reconnect into genuine fellowship.
Throughout the Day
Our communing with God doesn’t have to end when we leave our times of being alone with Him. God is always with us, even in the darkest of times. But we need to be intentional about recognizing His nearness. Some may call it practicing the presence of God, after the book of the same name by Brother Lawrence. He wrote about thinking often of God during the day and night, in our business and in our diversions. He called this art of practicing God’s presence a single act that never ends.
A cook by trade, Brother Lawrence considered his time communing with God while working in the kitchen of the same quality as when he was alone with God on his knees. He learned to cultivate the presence of God by joyfully thanking Him and praising Him as he went through the day.
One of my favorite verses about communicating with God as we go is: Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful (Colossians 4:2 NIV).
Digging deeper into this verse, “devote” means to adhere to, to be steadfastly attentive to, to give unremitting care about something.
So, as we go, even in the midst of the fray of the day, when unexpected brokenness and “interruptions” crowd in, we’re to stick with our continual commitment to communicating with God.
“Watchful” – be active, be aware, be alert for what God’s doing through and around us.
“Thankful” – have an attitude of gratitude, even for the hard things, knowing God, our Fullness of All Joy, is always with us.
Following are some suggestions for staying connected with God and practicing His presence throughout the day.
As you end your alone time with God, ask Him to keep you aware of Him as you tackle the challenges of the day. Talk with Him about the events on your schedule and invite Him into each activity.
If you’ve ever been on a long road trip or hike with a trusted companion, think about the “withness” you experienced. Words were not always spoken, but the extended time together gave you a deep sense of fellowship as you experienced the adventures along the way. Picture, in the dwelling Spirit of Jesus Christ, this same realization of continual “withness”.
As stressful challenges crop up during the day, see these as reminders that God is with you. Realize that whatever “brokenness” you face is not a surprise to your Father God. Talk with Him about it and depend upon Him more deeply in it.
When you are reminded again of God’s presence, after an extended time of focusing only on the endeavor at hand, don’t get discouraged. Simply thank God that you’re thinking of Him now and ask Him to keep you aware of Him now.
Don’t waste the down times. Unless you’ve packed your schedule to the brim, which I have a tendency to do, there will be times you find yourself alone with a bit of “free time”. A tendency is to fill this time with some noise or screen time. Instead, enjoy some silence with God. Love Him. Thank Him. Praise Him. Listen to Him.
Play the “I spy God” game. A number of years ago, Karen and David Mains, in there radio show Chapel of the Air, encouraged folks to go on God hunts throughout the day. Look for God in the beauties of His creation, in unusual “coincidences”, in unexpected encounters with folks. Thank God when you see Him and share the sightings with others.
As we practice these and other rhythms of communing with God, inertia will build and we will more and more experience continual fellowship with the One who loves us and gave Himself for us.
About Brother Lawrence it was written, “He often stated that it is God who paints Himself in the depths of our souls. We must merely open our hearts to receive Him and His loving presence.” [1]
Story:
A couple of years ago I was introduced to a small book on listening prayer entitled Chair Time , by Dan Sutherland. It’s based on what Ephesians 2:4-6 says about us being raised with Christ and seated with Him in heavenly places before the throne of God. The author asks us to picture a multitude of chairs around the throne of God and us seated in one of them. In this scenario, Sutherland asks, who would be doing the talking? Certainly not us.
He encourages a daily rhythm of picking the same chair, in the same place, at the same time, to sit and listen to God.
When we first sit down, Sutherland warns us that our minds will most likely be bombarded with all manner of distractions. His answer is to “spin off” each hampering thought. Perhaps use a “spin off” page to write things on and refer to them later.
When I practice “chair time” I have a journal and a black and blue pen.
The first phase, after “spin off” is called WOW. This is where we focus on being wowed by God’s magnitude and wonder. I usually use a Psalm to stoke the fires of my heart into praise. Using my black pen, I might write some genuine responses to who He is.
Next is NOW. This is when there’s a true acknowledgment of God presence with us right now. It’s believing He’s near, that Jesus, by His Holy Spirit indwells us and that our lives are hidden in Him.
I then write in black ink, “Do You want to say anything to me now?”
The blue ink is for what follows. Sometimes there’s silence, an enjoyment of just being with God. Other times, I get a sense of what He might be saying and I write it done in blue. I’m very careful during these time to be sure what I write down is not just what I want to hear.
An example was when I was listening to what He might be saying concerning the death of my sister. What I believe I heard was, “I am enough. No matter what, I am enough.“
Looking back over the blue ink in my last few journals, What I see is God’s truth from scripture, nothing new. But each time, it’s exactly what I needed to hear at the time.
These things I have spoken to you while remaining with you.But the Helper, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and remind you of all that I said to you (John 14:26-27 NASB).
The last phase is HOW. How do I respond to what I believe God has said? For me, this is usually a prayer written in black ink.
Conclusion
We were designed to live in community with God. When sin separated us, Jesus’ blood brought us back. Our Lord is near. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together (Colossians 1:17 NASB).
We can walk with God, praising Him, talking with Him, listening to Him, depending on Him as we go. Being with Him, savoring His nearness, loving with His love is our path to full joy, in spite of what we face.
Part of the formula for communing with God is time alone. Jesus modeled this for us on countless occasions. But also, when we’re in the midst of our days, our fellowship continues as we seek God’s will and His guidance. Being dedicated to our conversations with Him, we rest in His nearness, abide in His Spirit, listen to His promptings seek to glorify Him with every word and deed. We keep alert, looking to praise Him, thank Him and enjoy Him each moment.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight (Proverbs 3:5-6 NASB)
In all our ways, as we we go, we acknowledge the Lord is with us.
Prayer
Lord, right now I truly recognize You are here. I know it. Yet, sometimes I forget. Sometimes, even in my “quiet times,” I fail to truly acknowledge You. I read Your Word and talk to You, but in becomes an activity, not true fellowship.
I’m sorry, Lord.
In my day, I can get so caught up with the duties, I miss You. I can go large stretches of time not even thinking of You are thanking You for my breaths.
I’m sorry, Lord.
As I write, I sense Your forgiveness and Your desire for me to leave all that’s in the past behind. Right now I go forward with You. Keep me aware of You.
I love you Lord.
Amen.
Personal Study
Chair Time Pick a chair in a place you can have silence and solitude.
Spin Off – Give to the Lord all that crashes into your mind to distract you from quiet.
WOW – Be amazed at who God is and praise His name.
NOW – Recognize God nearness right this moment.
Try and spend at least 15 minutes listening for what God may be saying to you. The recommendation is to write down what you hear. Don’t be discouraged if you hear nothing the first time. Try again.
Follow it up with:
HOW – Determine how to respond to what you’ve heard.
[1] From Goodreads description of The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/498641.The_Practice_of_the_Presence_of_God
Please Check out the new Cola City Podcast . Discussions that impact the vision of reaching every man, woman, and child with the gospel.
Joy in the Journey is about the gladness of God’s nearness in the midst of life’s adventures.
Subscribe below to get email notifications of new posts. We post a few times a month. Thank you for reading.
Novels by the Author:
Rob Buck
What happens when a professor figures out how to send messages to his younger self to try and avoid the suicide of his best friend? Did he change more than he bargained for? Beyond Time
By finding two undelivered letters in a old shack deep in the woods, Cassie and Daniel unknowing set off a series of events which uncover a plot to wipe out a whole family Hope Remains
