Thanksgiving Found in the Divine Purpose of Our Tribulation?

Reverend Leo H. McCrary II

The tribulation of today is not for your destruction, but will one day be another reason you giving thanks to God.

Introduction

As we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving, I would be remiss if I did not address those who are struggling this year to find reason to give thanks for anything.  Many are tired and worn down from all the tribulation they have faced over the past eleven months.  So, I want to share an uplifting word today because, while you may face tribulation, you do have reason to rejoice.  God has a plan–there is a divine purpose in our trials and tribulations.  

Rejoicing in Tribulation

In Romans 5:3, Paul spoke to the Romans about having tribulations, teaching them to glory (rejoice with great joy) in tribulations.  

As you can imagine, nobody in the midst of tribulation wants to hear that they should rejoice because of their struggle.  Paul, however, was sharing those words from his own personal experience; he had seen some things and gone through some things.

Let us remember that Paul is the same one who not only stood by when Stephen was stoned to death, but he also urged the crowd to do it (Acts 7:58;22:20)!  Paul, admittedly, sought to destroy the church as he stood against the way of Christ (Gal. 1:13).  To the Corinthians, Paul admitted to have an thorn in his flesh, believing it was of Satan (2 Cor. 12:7).  

Paul had his own trials and tribulations, which he could look back on in thanksgiving, as he spoke to the Romans.  You see, in his tribulations, Paul learned that in his weaknesses, God is perfect.  He learned that the Lord was with him and would always renew his strength!

In Romans 5:1-2, Paul spoke of how grateful he was for having peace with God through his faith and fellowship with Christ, as the Lord helped him to overcome his afflictions.  The joy that he had is what he wished for the Romans and for us to have.

  The notion of rejoicing in tribulation is one that is not just shared by Paul, but one that is shared throughout the Bible.  In his letter, James, Jesus’ half-brother, said that one ought to count it all joy when they fall into various trials and tribulations.  

In Psalm 23, David spoke of having gone through a valley of death, not from a place of fear, but out of thanksgiving.  In that valley of tribulation, David learned that God was his shield and protector, his sustainer and his deliverer from all troubles.  David was thankful that God was with him and helped him in all of his struggles.

Rejoicing in tribulation may make very little sense to many of us because many believe that since they are God’s children, they ought not have any struggles.  There is a belief that the path should be clear, smooth sailing, and sunshine and rainbows because God is Almighty.

God Permits Tribulations

Yet, there is a harsh truth that I want to share with all of you.  Tribulations are a part of life, the result of man’s sin in the garden.  The Lord told Adam in the garden, “In toil you shall eat…In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread (Gen. 3:17,19).”

So, not only are tribulations a part of life, but God permits us to have them!  Now, many of you will frown at this thought, and you will be filled with questions, wondering “Why?  Why would God permit us to have struggles and hardships?  Why would God permit us to be afflicted?  Why would God permit us to have tribulations?”

Tribulations of Job and Jeremiah

When I think of how to answer that question, I think of the testimony of Job.  Job was a faithful man, described as being a blameless and upright man (Job 1:1).  His tribulation was not brought on by something he had done, but because Satan sought to break a faithful and upright man (Job 1:9-11).

So Satan afflicted Job greatly, first striking his family, then his livelihood, and then plaguing Job from head to toe.  For a while, Job wallowed in grief, and he did as many of us day in the day of our tribulation; he struggled with the idea that God was permitting him to have such tribulation.  Job even wondered why God had set Himself against him, for no apparent reason.

Yet, by the end of his story, we know that Job endured his tribulation.  In the end, he learned of God’s mercy as God did not permit him to be destroyed.  Moreover, Job was blessed twice what he had before the day of his tribulation.  Have you begun to notice a pattern in having tribulation?

Jeremiah is another I think of when it comes to answering the question as to why God permits tribulation.  Jeremiah’s tribulation was brought on through ministering to Jerusalem and the southern kingdom of Judah.

On behalf of God, Jeremiah prophesied to the people about their sin and about how Jerusalem would one day fall because of their sin.  Jeremiah called for the people to repent, but he was mocked and ridiculed.  Because he no longer wanted to be mocked and ridiculed, Jeremiah tried to stop prophesying to the people.  Yet, he found that the word of God dwelt in him like a fire that was shut up in his bones; he could not stop ministering as it wearied his soul trying to do so (Jer. 20:9).

He was heartbroken the day Jerusalem fell to the Babylonians.  In the day of his lament and tribulation, Jeremiah, like Job, said he felt like God had pierced him with arrows from His quiver.  He, like many of us, felt like the Lord had moved his soul far from peace (Lam. 3:13-17).

Yet, at the end of his lamenting, Jeremiah walked away saying that God was his portion.  You see, Jeremiah said that he learned that God was his comforter and deliverer!  He was grateful, having learned that God’s mercies are new every morning (Lam. 23:22-24)!

Tribulations are Needed

Like Job and Jeremiah, we lament the day of our tribulation as an evil thing that has come upon us, but truthfully, tribulations are needed.  This will certainly be hard for many to hear, as we often think that our tribulations are going to destroy us.  Yet, as we’ve seen in all the examples I’ve shared, our tribulations aren’t for our destruction, as that would go against God’s promise.

What God has promised to us

God has promised that His thoughts towards us are not evil but are of peace (Jer. 29:11).  If His thoughts towards us were evil, our hardships would have crushed us long ago!  Yes, we are hard-pressed on every side, but we are not destroyed! 

God has promised to never leave us nor forsake us.  You see, the Lord is always with you, in both the good and the bad days.  Through Christ, we have an intimate relationship (fellowship) with God.  In our fellowship with the Lord, there is nothing that can separate us from His love.  

Your trials and tribulations of today cannot separate you from the love of God.  The works of the wicked that we see coming from man cannot separate you from the love of God.  The works of Satan and his army cannot separate you from the love of God.  The only one that can separate you from the love of God is you, yourself.

I want you to understand that God has promised salvation, not destruction.  Jesus told Nicodemus that whoever believes in Him will not perish but will have everlasting life (John 3:16).  Now, did He say that we wouldn’t have tribulation while dwelling in the world?  Absolutely not.

In John 16:33, Jesus makes it clear that we are going to have struggles and hardships–we will have tribulation.  Yet, in the day of our struggle, Jesus has told us that He has given to us His peace.  He has given us peace of mind that we will overcome the day of our trouble, by His hand.  

Growth from our tribulation

Tribulations are needed because through them, we learn and we grow.  Without tribulation and learning from them, we would become nothing but prideful and arrogant fools.

— pullquote Rom. 5:3-5 –

Paul told the Romans that tribulation helps to produce perseverance.  Perseverance is patience–a steadfast trust in the Lord.  This, again, reminds us of what James said when he encouraged one to let patience have its perfect work (Jas. 1:4).

When our struggles are too great, they have a way of taking away the arrogance many have in believing they can take on life without the Lord.  It is in our struggles that we turn to the Lord and cry out, “Our Father, who art in heaven!”  It is in our heartaches that we turn to the Lord and cry out, “Lord, have mercy on me!”  Our tribulations draw us nearer to the Lord in total dependence on Him!

When we learn to let patience have its perfect work, we see that the Lord mounts us up with wings like an eagle!  We can run and not grow weary, and we can walk and not faint, as God renews our strength, rewarding our faith (Is. 40:31).  

Again, our tribulations are needed because we learn and we grow!  Paul told the Romans that when tribulation produces perseverance, that perseverance produces character.

You see, with that renewing of strength in our souls, by God, we who are of faith become people of great courage and valor.  More and more, we are transformed from one who is a coward who dwells in fear.  You see, our struggle brings us out of our shell as we become more and more confident to face the next challenge, knowing we will overcome!

In that confidence, Paul told the Romans that character produces hope in us.  Hope, I want you to understand, is incredibly powerful as it is the engine of our faith in the Lord.  Because our hope is in the Lord, we begin to learn and to see that all things are possible to us because God is with us and He favors us!  We learn that we can do anything and overcome all adversity because God is not only with us, but He is for us.

Yes, Satan tries to destroy us by afflicting us greatly, but the only thing he is doing is making us stronger.  As I said in the beginning, through all the adversities you face, God has a plan!  Your struggles are not the end of you, but are key to shaping, molding, and forming you into better.

Tribulations Bring Out the Best in Us

Like Paul, I would tell all of you that I have had, and still face much tribulation, yet I rejoice.  I am thankful because the tribulation of yesterday has shaped me into who I am today, and I know that the tribulation of today is shaping me into even better for tomorrow.  

I genuinely believe that you are a better person today than you were yesterday, and will be a better person tomorrow than you are today because of the lessons you will learn.  Our tribulations bring out the best in us, even though we may not be able to see that today.  

In our struggles, we learn humility, letting go of our pride and arrogance, which are detrimental to us and to those around us.  Because of our struggle, we become more compassionate to the plight of others.  In that compassion, we become more eager to help whenever and wherever we can, showing much kindness.  In other words, our struggles help us to draw closer to the kind of love God desires for us to have with one another.  

Let us pay close attention to the fact that our tribulations help to actually produce the fruits of the Spirit–humility, compassion, faithfulness, kindness, and love.  Yes, the struggle you are having in this season is helping you to be able to produce better fruit for tomorrow.  Let me also remind you that the fruit you bear won’t just be for yourself or your loved ones, but for everyone around you.

Without our struggles, I say again, we’d be prideful, arrogant, egotistical fools who set ourselves on a path of destruction–a path of our own making.

We are, today, the best version of ourselves the world has ever seen, yet we are constantly growing and evolving because of our struggle.  We are a people of a special kind of spirit because we have been tried and tested in the fire and come out as a brilliant gem.  There are many who see the brilliance of our spirit and desire to have the same joy in a season like now.

If you desire to know how we push through seasons like now, when there is much tribulation, may you permit me to encourage you to try God?  You see, we have great joy and confidence because we know very well that there will be a better tomorrow.  

We have learned and know that weeping may endure for a night but joy does come in the morning.  God has been good to us, continually, all the days of our lives and in the days of all of those who came before us.  We have learned to put our hope in the Lord, and God delivers us.

I promise you today that if you were to do the same, God will give you reason to smile in confidence.  As David said, “Taste and see that the Lord is good”.