Thanks even without a title
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Today is Thanksgiving Day. It is a Sunday to give thanks to God with our hearts, our lips, and our material offerings while thinking of the various graces God has given us over the past year. It is said that a tree is known by its fruit. Likewise, a person's religious life can be known by looking at his gratitude. A grateful person thinks everything positively. So the face is always bright. I have joy and peace in my heart. There is satisfaction. Such a person never lives in vain. But the ungrateful person always has negative thoughts. My face is not bright. You cannot rejoice because your heart is full of complaints and dissatisfaction. Therefore, we must be grateful people.
102 British Puritans left England for the United States in search of religious freedom. After a long voyage of 63 days, we managed to arrive in the United States. fought disease. struggled with poverty. I suffered a lot. Nearly a year has passed and half of the people have lost their lives. When they started farming and harvested after a thousand hardships, they did not lose their thanks to God in spite of the difficulties. He called the Indians, gave a feast, and gave thanks to God. God blessed those who gave thanks in the midst of difficulties.
The prophet Habakkuk was originally a complainer. However, when Habakkuk heard the voice of God, his complaints disappeared and he became a man of thanksgiving.
1. When did the prophet Habakkuk give thanks to God?
Habakkuk heard the news that the Babylonians were coming to invade Israel. They are a ferocious people. They are hasty people. Just like an eagle rushing down to grab food, I heard the news that the Babylonian cavalry was rushing to invade Israel. I began to feel a terrifying feeling as if my intestines were twisted. My lips trembled. But the prophet Habakkuk was not discouraged. Even when such tribulation came, I thought of God and gave thanks. To not forget and give thanks in the midst of difficult adversity is the true form of a saint.
What difficult adversity do you have? Are you in trouble? The more you do that, the more you should not forget to give thanks and work hard to give thanks. As we know, Psalm 50:15 says, “Call on me in the day of trouble, and I will deliver you, and you will glorify me.” When we do not forget and give thanks to God in the day of trouble, we will be able to experience the amazing works of miracles. God will save us from our tribulation. Not only that, but our tribulation will change and become an opportunity for blessing to glorify God.
2. What kind of thanks did the prophet Habakkuk give to God?
Habakkuk 3:17 says, “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls.” Here, the word no is repeated six times. No matter how difficult it was, Habakkuk nevertheless gave thanks to God on a high level of giving thanks to God.
There are three types of gratitude. First, there is “what if” gratitude. It's 'if' in English. If you do this, I'd appreciate it. It is conditional thanks. It means that if God gives me material blessings, I will be thankful. I am grateful to you if you can cure my illness. This is a conditional thank you, thanks in case. However, this audit is the lowest level of audit.
The second is thanks “because”. It's a 'because of' thanks. I am thankful because God has given me health and has given me material blessings. Our gratitude should not remain in gratitude.
The third is gratitude for “Nevertheless”. Like the prophet Habakkuk, though the fig tree does not bud, the vines fail, the olives yield no crops, the fields produce no food, there are no sheep in the pen, and there are no cattle in the stalls, nevertheless give thanks to God. should be our gratitude.
3. How was the prophet Habakkuk able to give thanks in the midst of such extreme tribulation?
3:18 “I will rejoice in the LORD, I will rejoice in the God of my salvation.” The prophet Habakkuk did not place his gratitude on earthly and carnal sources. They were rejoicing, satisfied, and giving thanks to the God of salvation.
There is a poet in Japan called Mizuno Kenzo. I had cerebral palsy when I was in 4th grade. I have become like a vegetative man, unable to move even one finger and toe. I cannot write or speak. However, as I received God, read the Bible, and listened to the recorded Bible over and over again, I received profound grace. Especially in 2 Corinthians 12, I sympathize with Paul who gives thanks despite the thorn in the body of the apostle Paul. He began to translate the grace of God that Kenzo realized into writing. Among them is the poem “If it were not painful”. “If I had not suffered, I would not have accepted God’s love. If all the brothers and sisters had not suffered, the love of God would not have been transmitted. If our Lord had not suffered, the love of God would not have been revealed.” It is the content of a poem written by the most grateful person in the world by the most unfortunate person in the world.
I hope that we too, like the prophets of Haba, do not put our gratitude on the worldly things and the fleshly things like Kenzo, but be able to give thanks even if there is nothing, nevertheless.