Attitude

1Thessolonians 5:17 in the Message says; 

Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live.

How in the world do I do that?  I mean, take any given day and I can list at least a dozen reasons why I would struggle to be cheerful! Look at the newspaper or listen to the news and there are about a dozen reasons not to be cheerful.  Look at the checkbook or the price of gas or who my kid is hanging out with, more reasons NOT to be cheerful. So what does he mean when he says, “be cheerful no matter what”?

Paul goes on to say, pray all the time.

 What? Pray all the time?  Now, how am I supposed to do that?? I pray before going to bed, before each meal, and when I need a parking spot, but ALL the time? Is that even possible?

Then Paul says; thank God no matter what happens.

Ok now he is just going too far. No matter what happens, I am supposed to thank God?

Even when;

The car breaks down?

The check book bounces?

My son comes home with a tattoo?

Why? Because Paul says; this is the way God wants you who belong to Christ Jesus to live.

This is too hard, Lord. I can’t do this.

That is exactly how I felt when I went to a retreat years ago.  It was while I was living in Salt Lake City, Utah and I was so very grateful someone had paid my way to attend this weekend retreat.  With a 2 year old  I desperately longed for a “girls only” weekend.   As I pulled up to the beautiful lodge, I was overwhelmed with appreciation for the privilege of being with so many other godly women.  The theme of the retreat was; Pray without ceasing, 1Thessolonians 5:17. 

I don’t remember the name of the speaker but  25 years later I can remember what she said.  She was maybe all of 5 feet tall and in her late 70’s.  She had a very soft voice but what she said spoke volumes into my life.

She began with posing the same questions I had struggled with over this idea of praying without ceasing.

She began,

The secret of praying without ceasing, to be thankful no matter what, is to live in an attitude of prayer and thanksgiving. When you are folding your clothes, thank God that you have clothes to wear then thank God that you have a child who wears those clothes and then you can go right into praying for that child. Thank you Jesus that you gave me this son. May he learn to walk with you and stay close to you all his days.  May he marry a godly woman and love her as You love the church, Lord.  Keep her pure and close to your heart. “

Wow I thought all that while folding his shirt!

She went on;

When you are making your beds thank God for the comfort of sleep. Pray that your sleep would be sweet and that God would continue to pour out His blessings on your family. As you fluff up the pillow, pray that God would lift up your head and keep you in His care. 

 I was beginning to get excited.  I could do that, I thought.  Even though I was a young mom, home with my toddler, I really could pray all day.

I will never forget how she ended that first talk.  She said;

I got so excited when I was doing the dishes one night, thanking God for the wonderful meal that these dirty dishes represented, praying for my husband as he worked to provide for us, I turned the plate over and saw it was made in China and I went on to pray for my persecuted brothers and sisters in the church in China!

Her enthusiasm was contagious, Praying without ceasing was possible! It is all about attitude.

Her words radically changed the way I lived.  I purposed to live in an attitude of prayer and thanksgiving.  Now when I look at that scripture,

Be cheerful no matter what; pray all the time; thank God no matter what happens. This is the way God wants you, who belong to Christ Jesus to live.

I have come to understand that Paul is telling us that because we belong to Christ Jesus, live in an attitude of prayer and thanksgiving. If you do, then you can be cheerful no matter what. You will understand that it is God who is in control. It is God who is bigger than your problem.  It is the God of the Universe who deeply loves your child more than you do. Your eyes will be on Jesus not the problem.  You can be cheerful because He is your source of joy!
When our attitude is fixed on Jesus we can have a joy that is unexplainable, a peace that is unending and a calm in the midst of chaos that is beyond words.

You can be thankful no matter what because HE is worthy of our thanks.

And as Paul says, that’s the way we should live, we who belong to Jesus!