My Answer: Give thanks even in hard times
Q: Some friends invited me to their apartment for Thanksgiving this year, but I refused. I’ve had a miserable year — death of my husband, financial problems, sickness. It would be hypocritical for me to say I’m thankful. You’ll probably disagree, but can you understand why I feel this way? — Mrs. D.R.
A: Yes, I can understand your feelings, but most of all, I want to assure you that God knows what you’ve been going through and understands why you feel this way. The Bible says, “But you, Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness” (Psalm 86:15).
When bad things happen to us, it’s not easy to be thankful for them — or for anything else, for that matter. But as millions across our country gathered to celebrate Thanksgiving, my prayer is that it allowed them to mark a new beginning in their lives. Yes, God understands how you feel, but he loves you and wants to help you overcome these feelings and give you hope for the future.
And he will do this, as you turn to him and ask Christ to come into your life. We’re never alone when we know Christ, and even in life’s darkest moments he never abandons us. Jesus’ invitation is: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).
List the good things that are still a part of your life — and then thank God for them. Thank him too for Jesus Christ, and ask him to help you trust your life and your future into his hands.
As a footnote, in the next few days thank your friends for their invitation, and let them know you value their friendship.
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Q: Why does God offer to forgive us, no matter how bad we’ve been? I don’t see why God even puts up with us, since we’ve rejected him and broken every law he ever gave us. If I were God, I think I’d just do away with the human race. — M.J.G.
A: No matter what we’ve done or how rebellious we’ve been, God offers to forgive us for only one reason: He loves us. It doesn’t seem logical, and we don’t deserve it, but it’s still true. In spite of all our sins, he loves us. The Bible says, “I have loved you with an everlasting love” (Jeremiah 31:3).
How do we know this is true? You’ve already pointed out one reason: If he didn’t love us, he surely would have destroyed us long ago. After all, if people treated us as badly as we’ve treated God, we’d probably strike back at them and even try to destroy them.
But God isn’t like us. His love is infinite. The Bible says, “For I am God and not a man ... I will not come in wrath” (Hosea 11:9, ESV).
But the main reason we know God loves us is because of Jesus Christ. He was God in human flesh, and he came into this world for one reason — to make our forgiveness possible. He did this by becoming the final and complete sacrifice for our sins, through dying on the cross for us.
As the Bible says, God “loved us and sent his son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins” (1 John 4:10).
Has God’s love become a reality in your life? It will, as you accept God’s gift of forgiveness by confessing your sins and by faith asking Christ to come into your life. Don’t let another day go by without him.
(Send your queries to “My Answer,” c/o Billy Graham, Billy Graham Evangelistic Assn., 1 Billy Graham Parkway, Charlotte, N.C., 28201; call 1-(877) 2-GRAHAM; or visit https://www.billygraham.org.)