Thanksgiving in an Ash Heap (continued)
If you missed yesterday’s post, you can read it here.
The Bible tells us we are to give thanks to God in all things.1 Please note, it does not say we give thanks to God for all things, but rather in all things. There are a lot of things in our world and lives that we would be idiots to be thankful for. And no, I’m not going to bother listing them. There are too many.
But we can decide to give thanks to God in all things, even when we are sitting in the ash heap, scraping pus-filled boils. Those boils may not be literal as in the case of Job, but there are emotional, mental, and spiritual wounds that are just as painful, if not more so.
But why would anyone give thanks to God in the ash heap? Yesterday, I shared with you the first of several reasons. I’m not going to list that reason here because it would require me explaining it all over again. Instead, I’m going to give you the second reason we thank God while sitting in the ash heap.
And like I said about the first reason, this is not exactly the kind of thing that makes us want to jump up and down, shouting, “Hallelujah, praise God!”
It is, however, a life-changing truth. Once you experience it, you will never be the same.
We thank God in the ash heap because ash heaps make us stronger.
James, the half-brother of Jesus, tells us that we count it all joy whenever we fall into various trials in our lives.2
Why?
Because, he says, as our faith is tested in the midst of these trials, we grow stronger in our spirits. Unconquerable spirits are forged in the fires of life. But, says James, we must endure these trials. That is, we must not run away, try to get out from under them, or otherwise give up.
There are a lot of bitter, cynical Christians out there who, instead of enduring a trial/s, decided to get out, to leave, to quit. Others who were unable to do these things just did what Job’s wife encouraged him to do - curse God.3 Oh, they may not have literally cursed God, but they might as well have, and their broken, bitter spirits are testimony to that fact.
But like Job, we must believe that when God has tested us in the fire, we will come forth as gold!4
The apostle Paul expands ever more on what James says when he tells us that as we endure the ash heaps, we will develop character, integrity, and strong, unbreakable spirits. And these strong spirits fill our lives with hope; hope that comes directly from God’s Spirit.5
I can tell you that my character/integrity is greater than it’s ever been - not that I don’t have some room to grow. :)
But my spirit overflows with hope and joy, and I’m stronger than I’ve ever been when it comes to who I am, what I want in life, and what I will and will not do when it comes to my relationships with other people, and the ministry to which Christ has called me. (And not called me.)
But I’ve had to endure some ash heaps to reach this place. And I’m going to tell it to you straight - those ashes came with some hot coals. I don’t ever want to experience those things again. But boy, oh boy, am I glad I did. I’m a better person, a stronger person, and a happier person for it.
And I can tell you this. I know this in the depths of my being - - -
YOU WILL BE BETTER FOR THE ASH HEAP. YOU WILL BE STRONGER THAN YOU’VE EVER BEEN. YOUR SPIRIT WILL BECOME UNCONQUERABLE.
Believe it.
And you can believe something else as well. You can believe that ash heaps do not last forever. (They just feel like they do). I’ll be talking about that in tomorrow’s post. I’ll also be sharing the number one reason why we thank God while sitting in life’s ash heaps.
Hang in there.
In Christ,
Dan
Check out my podcasts from Church on the Edge and my books on Kindle.
You can listen to my weekly messages at Embrace Church, High Point.
1 Thessalonians 5:18.
James 1:2-4.
Job 2:9.
Job 23:10.
Romans 5:3-5.