Thanks to God

Thanks, O God, for boundless mercy from Thy gracious throne above;
Thanks for ev’ry need provided from the fullness of Thy love!
Thanks for daily toil and labor and for rest when shadows fall;
Thanks for love of friend and neighbor and Thy goodness unto all!

Thanks for thorns as well as roses; thanks for weakness and for health;
Thanks for clouds as well as sunshine; thanks for poverty and wealth!
Thanks for pain as well as pleasure-all thou sendest day by day;
and Thy Word, our dearest treasure, shedding light upon our way.

Thanks , O God for home and fireside, here we share our daily bread;
Thanks for hours of sweet communion, when by Thee our souls are fed!
Thanks for grace in time of sorrow and for joy and peace in Thee;
Thanks for hope today, tomorrow, and for all eternity!

Many of you have probably heard the Scripture I Thessalonians 5:18 which says “In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”  I have heard different preachers expound on this passage, and many have commented that it is important to understand that the Word says “In every thing give thanks,” not “For every thing give thanks.”  All of the translations that I have looked at do say “In” and not “For” so I will trust the scholars who did the translations of this verse.  This hymn, however, did cause me think about a “thankful” mindset and about being thankful both “in” and “for” things in my life.  Several times in this hymn, the author thanks God for things that we typically aren’t real thankful for.  Things like “daily toil and labor,” “thorns,” “weakness,” “poverty,” and “pain.”  Can we be truly thankful for those kinds of things? 

• “Daily Toil and Labor” – Should we be thankful for a job and for work?  I think the answer is yes.  A job provides us with an income to support our family and support the work of the Church.  A job provides us with a sense of accomplishment, and often times, a place to have relationships with people.  The Bible says “Whatsoever you do, do it as unto the Lord.”  We don’t work for men.  We are the Lord’s workers, working in His vineyard.  We might find ourselves in different vocations, but we are all working for the same boss.

• “Weakness” – The Apostle Paul was thankful for his weakness.  In 2 Corinthians, he wrote “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.”  Weaknesses, therefore, aren’t something to be ashamed of or complain about, but something that we can take pleasure in because it will allow us to show God’s strength.

• “Poverty” – For me personally, I have not had to experience true poverty in my lifetime and for that I am thankful.  Although I didn’t grow up in a wealthy family by any means, we were not poor.  However, there is an appreciation for the little blessings of life when someone lives in a state of poverty.  God also has a special place in His heart for the poor.  In Psalms 72:13, the Bible says “He shall spare the poor and needy, and shall save the souls of the needy.”

• “Pain” – C.S. Lewis wrote a book entitled “The Problem of Pain.”  The book discusses some of the reasons for/benefits of pain in our life.  As an example of that, pain can be a great protector for us.  If you stick your hand too close to the flame, pain tells you to pull back.  If we didn’t have nerve endings telling our brain that we are in pain, how much more damage would we do to our hands?  In that situation, pain, therefore, is something to be thankful for.

Finally, this hymn was written by a man named August Storm who spent most of his life in Sweden.  The song was translated into English at a later time, but was originally entitled “Tack O Gud” in its original language.  I know that I am a little warped, but the title struck me funny because it sounds like “Taco-Good” if you use your best Swedish accent.  Thanksgiving and tacos, however, just don’t go together, do they?  I then asked myself “Would I be thankful for tacos at Thanksgiving Dinner?”  It’s not turkey and ham.  It’s not my family tradition, and it’s not what I am used to.  Part of true thankfulness, however, is giving thanks in every thing and being thankful for most, if not all, things.   Being thankful if you’re with your family at Thanksgiving, and if you’re not.  Being thankful for the friends and family that you have – whether they aggravate you or not.  Being thankful for food that might not be your favorite, realizing that there are people in our community that are hungry who would be truly thankful for just a morsel of food.  It’s all about perspective.

 Start a new tradition this year.  Apply I Thessalonians 5:18 to your life, and be thankful in every thing, and make yourself a turkey taco this year at Thanksgiving dinner.  People will tell you that you’re strange, and you can say, “Not strange, just thankful.” Feliz Día de Acción de Gracias (which means Happy Thanksgiving in Spanish).  Enjoy your tacos.