Way before I really knew Jesus or had any experience with the Holy Spirit, I was in one of those predicaments that so many women find themselves in when we rely on our own highest thought to direct our own lives.
Or lowest thought.
Against my better gut judgment, I said "yes" to moving in with a guy that I had been dating. Completely selfish and self-centered and having zero idea of Christ-like love or sacrifice, I literally drove this guy to drink. I'm not kidding. He'd come home later and later until finally one day, he didn't come home.
So there I was, crying my eyes out for what seemed like days, when a dear friend came over with some Christian tapes, lunch and a sympathetic ear.
If you ever want to make a huge impression on anyone in pain, bring them food. I'm serious. That makes an impact.
She was different and all she said about that was that she had rededicated her life to Christ.
Hmmm.
Long story short, she left me with the tapes and I started listening to one in particular called Prison to Praise.
Changed. My. Life.
The premise of the tapes was based on 1 Thessolonians 5:16-18(NIV) which says:
"Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus,"
and Ephesians 5:20(NIV) which says,
"always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ."
The author, Merlin Carothers, spoke of being instructed by the Holy Spirit to give thanks not just in all things, but FOR all things, for this is the will of God for His plan for salvation.
There are stories in Prison to Praise that speak of parents thanking God that their daughter was dancing in a strip joint, praising Him that this was all part of His plan for her salvation. Soon after they started praying in this way, a believer walked into the seedy dance bar and offered her the gift of salvation. She accepted Jesus and is now serving Him in a mighty way.
Another story details a soldier who wanted to quit smoking and couldn't find the will power on his own. After praying that specific prayer, every time he started to smoke, he'd throw up violently until his desire to smoke soon disappeared.
In my own life, I've prayed that prayer over incredibly difficult circumstances within my family and I've literally seen the people involved drop their argument and come crying back to each other begging forgiveness.
I've prayed "thank you God for..." when my husband and I've had a disagreement and have seen miraculous things unfold; things that have created a newfound understanding between us where before there was nothing but argument and dissension.
All from thanking God FOR the situation.
A friend shared this story,
"My teenage son was addicted to methamphetamine and pornography and would disappear for days at a time. For years, I would pray that God would make him stop using. We sent him to rehab after rehab and nothing worked. Within days of release, he'd be back at his dealer's house getting high again. We were out of options and ready to give up. Someone suggested that we thank God for his meth addiction; that it was all part of God's plan for our son's salvation. At first, it was hard to pray that way, but we realized that God knew what He was doing. Days after we prayed and thanked God for Mike's meth addiction, we received a phone call from Mike's best childhood friend telling us that Mike was there on his couch, sobbing. Mike got on the phone with us, and between choked back tears, told us that he had been using speed and in the midst of getting high, he was suddenly struck sober. He said that all of a sudden, he was aware that he was killing himself. He said it was almost like he was watching himself destroying himself with a needle and he was horrified and disgusted. He broke the rig in half, flushed the drugs and called his friend to pick him up. Mike is now serving the Lord in our church's youth group and has been clean for two years. He loves Jesus with his whole heart and he still loves snowboarding, playing bass guitar and reading spy novels. He's still Mike, bur he's not bound by drugs and pornography anymore. It was like our thanking God for Mike's drug problem released God's power in a miraculous way."
God wants to meet our needs. We don't have to beg Him, we just have to praise Him.
Say out loud, "Thank you, God, for __________; it's all part of your divine plan for my (or someone else's) salvation."
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