Being Thankful In Relationships

This is the time of year when relationships are put under more stress
than any other time of the year.  Add to this the fact that we are
quickly approaching the time of the Lord's return, where the Bible tells
us the love of many will wax cold, and we are going to see a tremendous
amount of break-ups in relationships and marriages.  There is only one
hope and it is the Lord and the Holy Spirit.  It is yielding to the Lord
and the Holy Spirit that will get us through these times.  With that I
want to share what the Lord has put on my heart about relationships and being thankful.

God’s Word teaches that we are supposed to be thankful for all things and in all things.  I used to wonder how in the world anyone could be thankful when things were going so bad.  Sure it is easy to be thankful for the good things and good times but what about when you feel like your whole world seems to be falling apart?  Well I’m here to tell you that it is not only possible but exactly what the Lord wants for you.  You mean the Lord wants us to suffer?  Certainly not.  Let me tell you some facts that we already know but we need to do more than know them.  We need to take hold of these truths for us and for our families and friends.  Here they are:

God loves us
God always wants the best for us
God knows everything that we are going through and everything has a purpose
God’s purpose is to create us in the image of His Son
God is in control and yes sometimes we suffer so others can find God
God is true and He knows all things, He cannot lie

So, whatever we go through has a silver lining in that it is doing us good ALWAYS!  What?  That is a strong statement.  Well let’s think about this for a minute.  If God isn’t working for good in our lives then He is a liar.  So is God a liar?  Absolutely not.  The disciples understood this and suffered knowing it was for the good.

God gave us His Holy Spirit to lead us into all truth and to teach us how to be like Jesus.  Part of that is showing us how those times have made us more like Jesus.  It is the coarse times that shape us.  The carving away and shaping that does not feel good but in the end we look just like Jesus.  Several years ago I made a telescope, creating my own mirror.  I started with two discs of glass and some coarse grit.  By rubbing the glass discs together with the grit and water between them I was able to shape the glass for making the mirror.  After getting the shape I wanted I used smaller and smaller grit to smooth the glass.  But I had to be careful that I didn't smooth the glass too much before switching over to a polishing process.  If you smoothed the glass too much, the water would dissipate and the two pieces of glass would freeze up. You would not be able to separate them without breaking the glass.  In a close relationship or in a marriage the Holy Spirit acts like the water and keeps the relationship cool.  The Word often refers to the Holy Spirit as a water.  When God talked about marriage He said “the two shall become one”.  They are different but over time in a marriage the rubbing together with the cooling effect of the Holy Spirit will result in them becoming one.  You will not be able to take them apart.

God uses our good and bad to work good in each other.  Without the Lord’s help that coarse rubbing will become so sensitive and heated up that it will cause division.  I am so thankful that the Lord has given His Holy Spirit to teach us and guide us.  If we ask the Spirit “how can I learn and grow from this” He will show us.  He will always tell us how we can change, not how others can change.  As we yield to the Spirit we will learn how this is working good in us and we will begin to be thankful for the work that He is doing in all things.

We may not always know right away why we are going through a hard time but we need to have faith.  Remember, without faith it is impossible to please God.  It may not feel good but God’s reward far outweighs the hard times that we have gone through.  And His blessing upon us and our family, if we commit to Him, will be worth the cost.  But the secret to being thankful in all things is truly believing that whatever comes our way is for our good and will make us more and more like Jesus.

Let’s take time to be thankful for the good and the bad and partner with the Holy Spirit to change us in all things to look more and more like our Lord Jesus Christ.