Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise His holy name. Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all His benefits. Psalm 103:1-2
“We need to be continually thankful to the Lord for the benefits we have received during the past year. Some we are aware of, but, perhaps even more valuable benefits have come to use without our recognition of them. These graces include rescue from dangers of body and soul, the making of new friends who will play a part in our salvation, and even apparent setbacks like sickness or professional failure. We should enjoy great peace, since we should know that God will draw abundant fruit from circumstances and events that present themselves as unwelcome and are seemingly counterproductive. We later understand these very occasions to be divine caresses.”
Francis Fernandez in In Conversation with God: Meditations for Each Day of the Year, volume 7 (London: Scepter, 1993) 198.
As I approach Thanksgiving, this reading hit home for me because I got word just yesterday of the departure of a staff member at GTP. She announced that she feels led to pursue God’s calling with another ministry.
My first response was sadness because she will be missed. Then, thanks to this reading, I saw this news as a blessing filled with possibility and promise. God will guide us to the next person who will fill her role and teach us new things.
As we approach Thanksgiving, pause to ponder your current situation and past year. Do so with thanksgiving for all God’s benefits and ones you may never be aware of. I am learning that disappointments are actually, as Fernandez put it, divine caresses.
And take time today to read Psalm 103 to prepare your heart, at least in USA, for a week focused on giving thanks.