Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus (Messiah Yeshua) for you. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18. So we must give thanks when things are going well, but we must also give thanks when we face trouble.
I want you to read with me 2 Chronicles 20, we find King Jeshoshaphat facing serious trouble: “Some men came and told Jehoshaphat, ‘A vast army is coming against you from Edom, from the other side of the Sea’” (v. 2). But in verse 12 Jehoshaphat prayed, “O our God, will you not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you.” Now read verse 21: “After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the Lord and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying: ‘Give thanks to the Lord, for his love endures forever.’” As they went out to face this vast army, they gave thanks to God. Even so, we must give thanks to the Lord when we face trouble.
In the book of the prophet Jonah, we learn that he was in the midst of a problem as he sat in the belly of a big fish. In Jonah 2:2 he says, “In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me. From the depths of the grave I called for help, and you listened to my cry.” And in verse 9 he declares: “But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. Salvation comes from the Lord.” Even when we are in the middle of great trouble… in sickness and in health, in poverty and in wealth, in prison and in freedom, when we are loved by people and when they hate us, we must praise and thank God.
Brother, Timothy