Thank Him anyway!

    In the book of John 6:1-14, we read the story of Jesus feeding a large multitude. A large crowd had followed Him because of the signs they witnessed Him doing for those who were sick. He realised that they were hungry but instead of turning them away to find their own food, He prompted His disciples to find food for them. A young boy offered his lunch - five loaves and two small fish. That was way less than what they needed. They needed so much more than that to be able to adequately feed this large crowd. 
    Yet, Jesus instructed the disciples to seat the people in groups. He then took the food, gave thanks for it and gave it to the disciples to distribute to the people. By the time the people ate and were satisfied, the leftovers they collected, amounted to twelve baskets.
    What of course stands out for me, is the tiny amount of food available in comparison to the large crowd that needed to be fed. When the disciples were initially presented with the problem, they suggested sending the people away to the town to buy food to eat (Matthew 14:15). In John’s account, when Jesus suggested that they feed the people, Phillip pointed out that they did not have enough money to do so (John 6:7). 
    When they finally took note of what they did have, it still was not enough, yet, Jesus’ immediate response was to ensure the people were comfortably seated and He took the food and gave thanks for it. This is the part I want to focus on - He gave thanks for it (John 6:11a). Jesus knew exactly what was in His hand. He knew that it was not enough yet, He chose to give thanks for it. 
    By Jesus’ own example, we see the importance of being thankful not only when things are the way we want them to be but even when they are not. I recall the story of Elijah the prophet announcing to king Ahab that rain was coming after some years of drought (1 Kings 18:41-45). His exact words were: “Go up, eat and drink; for there is the sound of abundance of rain” (v. 41). He was encouraging king Ahab to rejoice because the drought was about to end! When his servant finally saw signs of rain, it was a tiny, insignificant cloud the size of a man’s hand. Elijah did not wait for the weather to become stormy but instead encouraged king Ahab to leave before the rains came. 
    I am thinking here of Elijah’s confidence in his God and his expectation that God would indeed send the rain that would end the drought. His actions and attitude were ones of expectation. We too should have an attitude of expectation and thanksgiving even when God doesn’t seem to quite answer the way we would like. Sometimes we are waiting for things to be perfect, to look exactly the way we pictured it in our mind. But God may not always choose to answer the way we desire. 
    Jesus Himself shows us that we need to be thankful for what little we have, expecting that God has the power to use it to give us the answer we need. I am learning more and more that our logic and God’s logic are usually two different things. Sometimes God just wants us to be thankful. Period. Not complaining and negative because the solution doesn’t look like the solution we hoped for. Instead, it’s about trusting His sovereignty, His ability to get the job done … His way.
    So, when we choose to be thankful even when things don’t quite look the way we want them to, what we are saying is: “God I trust You. I don’t trust what’s in my hand or how things look, but I trust that You are able to take even this and provide the solution I need; provide the healing I need; provide the deliverance I need; provide the restoration I need. God I am thankful because I choose to focus on Y.O.U.”
    If you have not accepted Jesus Christ into your life as your personal Lord and Saviour, I encourage you to do so today. With God in your life, there will always be something to be thankful for, no matter how bad things may look at times. God is All-Powerful, Almighty, well able to solve any problem that comes your way. It’s still all about Him!
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