First Thessalonians says, “Rejoice always, pray continually, and give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” With Thanksgiving recently over and finals around the corner it can seem like stress has been way too overwhelming and that there are no ways you can give thanks in your circumstance, but we can all do little things to get through stressful times. The context for the verse is essentially about Paul writing to Timothy to encourage him through tough times and to give thanks in them. Timothy had returned from Thessalonica to report that the Church of Ephesus had been holding strong through all the Christian persecution. Paul wrote to him from Corinth during his second ministry to encourage him to keep up the good work! We can all use Paul’s advice to Timothy for ourselves by rejoicing always, praying continually, and giving thanks in all circumstances. 

God calls us to rejoice in all circumstances, because he knows that all we are all put in where we are for a reason. God already has a path set for us, and if we follow his path we know that we are going through a stressful time that may be used for a bigger purpose. We may not like what situation we are put in, but we can rejoice knowing that God is with us in our situation no matter what and we can thank him for that. The creator of the Earth, that is bigger than any test that you may face, is with you through thick and thin and that is plenty to rejoice and be thankful over.

Now if that isn’t enough and you don’t know what to rejoice over; you can always pray to God to see what to rejoice over! Yes, him always being with you is one thing, but talking to him through your stresses is an opportunity for you to be thankful and rejoice in your circumstance. Sometimes it may feel like you are all alone and that nobody is there for you, but God is always there. God is always waiting for you; all you have to do is talk to him! He always knows what you can be thankful for, so when you feel like stress is all you can feel you can ask him what you can be thankful for! If you need a foundation for what you should be thankful for, just be thankful for a loving father that wants to be by your side and wants to talk to you through all your stress. 

Mr Rounsley provides clarity that all of us should hear. He had told me that “God doesn’t want us to give thanks for all circumstances, but to give thanks in all circumstances.” Giving thanks for all circumstances would be straight foolish. Nobody would give thanks for finals or having a ton of stress. You can always give thanks “in” those circumstances though. You can thank God that he is with you through your stress, you can thank God for giving you things to rejoice about, and you can give thanks that Mr. Rounsley made sure all of us know the difference between giving thanks for all circumstances and giving thanks in all circumstances! The takeaway from your fellow student, Izzy Hill, took from the verse was that “Through all the struggles we tend to forget to appreciate the little things, but we can pray continuously through the challenges.”