In All Circumstances Give Thanks

This Thanksgiving week, I am filled with gratitude. I have reasons not to be, as it was a difficult year marked by the death of my 1-year old son, Teddy, but God is so good and I am truly grateful for all of the blessings he has bestowed upon me and my family.

As I think about how grateful I am for my life, I realize that regardless of what is happening in life, we always have something to be grateful for. Even tragedies and suffering can be a cause for gratitude, because suffering tends to make us aware of our need for God. We do not need God more when we are suffering. We need God as much on our best days as we do on our worst days, but suffering can make us aware of our need for God. When we are conscious of our need for God, then we are living more fully as who we are meant to be as humans. God created us to participate in his own blessed life (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1). When we are conscious of our need for God, we are conscious of our purpose, which is to live in relationship with God now and for eternity. When the sufferings and difficulties of life in this fallen world bring us to that consciousness, they become a gift.

One thing the Book of Judges shows is that human beings living in a fallen world need things to happen that bring them back to God. God’s own people Israel saw Him perform miracles. They have tasted and seen how good God is. Yet, they routinely fell away from God and began to worship other gods. When they did this, he allowed the Israelites to fall to their enemies. When they would fall to their enemies, they would realize their need for God, and call out to God and worship Him again. So God would raise up a judge to free them from their enemies and restore peace and prosperity to the Israelite people. After a time of peace and prosperity, the Israelites would worship other Gods again. This became a cycle, referred to as the “cycle of sin” for the Israelites. The Israelite people were in a better position, spiritually, when their enemies conquered them but they were reminded of their need for God and turned back to Him. In those moments, they were being who they were meant to be as human beings and as God’s chosen people because they were praying to God and worshipping Him. Since we are made to be in relationship with God, then when we are worshipping God, that is when we are most fully human.

If our sufferings bring us back to God, in that way, then, they are a gift. This is what happened to the Israelites. This often happens to us as well. When Teddy was in the hospital battling cancer, I can attest that I prayed harder for his recovery than I ever prayed for anything prior. Yet I did not need God more then than I do now or at any other point. I was just more aware of my need for God in that moment. If we can see even suffering and tragedy this way, then we can fulfill the teaching of St. Paul to “give thanks in all circumstances” (1 Thessalonians 5:18). No matter what is happening, there is always a reason to give thanks, even if the only reason one can think of is that God is with us.