Oct 28, 2015
Willy Villalpando
Maranatha Community Church, Colton, CA
Today my friend and I were coming out of our biology class and we were greeted by a “lovely” heavy rain. All we could think about was how we were going to get to our next class across campus. Neither one of us had brought an umbrella and we had left our jackets in my car. We had heard a rumor that it might rain but neither of us had really believed the reports. So, needless to say, my friend and I ran out into the pouring rain to our next class attempting to shield ourselves with our binders. Of course, when we got to our next class we were both soaked from head to toe and shivering because the building’s air conditioning was on. (It had been hot earlier that day.) At the time, all my friend and I could think about was how miserable we felt. But it is November — the time of the year that we set apart to think about the blessings we have and what we can be thankful for! Since its time for thanksgiving, we are going to do a little exercise together. I want you to think of a random event that happened to you within the last few days — one, that at the time, seemed more negative than positive (as I did above). Go ahead and think about it — I’ll wait.
Got one? Awesome. Now I want you to flip that event on its head. How were you blessed by the event? What are you thankful for after the event occurred? 1 Thessalonians 5:18A (ESV) says, “Give thanks in all circumstances….” So that is what we are going to do. What happened in my event that was a blessing? Well, let’s start at the basics: I thank God for the rain that we so desperately need in California right now. I thank God that when I did not have my umbrella I did have somewhere to run to in order to shelter from the rain. I thank God that, a few days after this, I have not gotten sick. I thank God that rain only lasted about an hour or so, and my friend and I were able to run to my car and get our jackets after class. And I can even look at the fact that I had my binder to help shield me, because I probably would have been a lot more soaked if I had not had it. These are just a few examples of the blessings that were hidden in what I at first thought was an annoying inconvenience.
So what can you do with this? This is an exercise to help you see that we always have something for which to be thankful. It’s not always easy to remember that. But we can look at small inconveniences and find things for which to be thankful. It will only become easier to find things to be thankful for, and to thank God for, when times are hard.
