The Power of ThanksgivingEsimerkki

The Power of Perspective in Thanksgiving

"But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear." Philippians 1: 12–14 (NKJV)

As we noted yesterday, it’s entirely natural for us as humans to lose ourselves in difficulty. We tend to lose our joy, our perspective, and even see our faith shaken. We generally become very self-focused and usually develop extreme tunnel vision, unable to see beyond that which is invading and eroding our joy. But friends, I want to exhort you today with this simple truth: It doesn’t have to be this way.

You see, I believe that with spiritual maturity, as we grow more and more in our relationship with Jesus, as we abide deeper and deeper each day in Him and are changed from the inside out. As the Holy Spirit in us conforms us more closely each day into the image of Christ, our perspective on difficult circumstances and trials begins to shift. As one pastoral commentary on Philippians 1 noted, "One of the surest measures of our spiritual maturity is what it takes to rob us of our Spirit-bestowed joy. Paul's maturity is evident as he makes it clear that difficult, painful, even life-threatening circumstances did not rob him of joy but rather caused it to increase.” 

As we saw yesterday, Paul wasn’t focused on his chains but on his blessings. And what blessings were those? Well, the first is God! And listen . . . the blessing of personally knowing the Father, Son, and Spirit is more than enough to produce joy, satisfaction, and fulfillment. But he doesn’t stop there, because he is also full of thanksgiving for the grace and peace afforded to him through knowing God. And he’s also full of joy and gratitude for the people in his life—in this case the Philippians. And in today’s verse, you actually see Paul, the guy in prison for his faith, reassuring and comforting his friends about his circumstances. Why? Because he understood that all that matters is the gospel. 

Paul knew it was an honor and a blessing to be used by God to point others to Jesus, to be used to bring people to salvation; whether on the mountaintop or in the valley, whether in a palace or a prison cell. Similar to Joseph, who was able to say to his brothers in Genesis 50:20 (NKJV), “But as for you, you meant evil against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive,” Paul was able to see his situation for what it was . . . beautiful ministry in the hands of God. 

Like Paul, you and I are also called to be ministers wherever God places us. We are gospel-bearers and gospel-planters. If we can understand this, we can begin to see that God wants to use us, even in the midst of tough situations, to give us the platform to reach the lost. When we begin to recognize that God is always at work and that His plan is always for the good of those who love Him, then our trials are put into perspective and makes it possible for us to walk in thanksgiving, even in the hardest of seasons. This doesn’t mean it won’t still hurt. I had a friend once tell me while his two-year-old daughter was walking through cancer, “You don’t have to be happy to hope; you can be thankful to God, know you are blessed, walk in gratitude, and still hurt.” And maybe, just maybe, as you walk with this perspective, the way you experience your trials can impact the lives of the people around you. Consider that the manner in which Paul endured his chains allowed those around him to see God. Paul's testimony, the way he lived and treated others, positively impacted the lives of those around him. 

Not only that, but his chains also impacted other believers. Essentially, the way Paul lived and honored God, even in prison, inspired other believers to do the same! His influence on "the brethren" caused them to become bolder in sharing their faith. This was another effect of the way Paul lived. It was also more evidence of God's purposes for Paul's suffering!