Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, and give thanks in all circumstances. Does this mean that you have to be smiling all the time, to never stop praying, and to thank God even when terrible things happen to you?

Let’s have a closer look at these commands to see what they mean.

To rejoice always, doesn’t mean that we are never allowed to be sad. Of course, when hard things happen, you are allowed to be upset. But even while you are crying, you can still be joyful that you belong to Christ. Christ should mean everything to you. If we look to our toys to make us happy, our happiness will end if we lose them or they are taken away. However, because Christ will never leave us or be taken away from us, if we are happy in him then we will always be happy! And so you can rejoice even while sad.

To pray without ceasing doesn’t mean that you need to be praying all day every day. If you try to do that you wouldn’t be able to talk to other people or do your schoolwork. But it does mean that prayer must happen every day in our lives. We should never stop being praying people. You can’t just ask the Lord to bless you at the beginning of the year, and then not pray about it again. No, every single day you need to ask for the Lord’s blessings.

To give thanks in all circumstances reminds us to be thankful about everything. It’s fairly easy to be thankful to the Lord when things go well for us. But does this command also mean that you must thank the Lord if you get sick for example? No, but you do need to thank the Lord that he is caring for you, even while you are sick. No matter what is happening in your life, the Lord is in control and is making sure that everything that happens to you will make you grow closer to him.

These things aren’t easy to do, but God has also given you the Holy Spirit to help you to rejoice always, pray without ceasing and give thanks in all circumstances.

Reflection with your child:

Which of these three things do find the hardest to do? Why?

Source: Sermon by Rev. C. Vermeulen