1 Thessalonians 5:18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

Sometimes our circumstances are very difficult and we find it difficult to give thanks. That is why we have each other, to support us when we find it difficult to stand.

As I read this I looked around at the preceding passages. Here they are;  Rejoice always, and pray without ceasing. It appears that circumstances can affect both praise and prayer. Lacking in those two areas leads us to the third, thanksgiving.

Finding ourselves failing to do these two things is a sign we are already in need of sound counsel. When we don’t lean on one another we may well find ourselves spiraling downward.

Depression is ahead and the Lord does not want that for any of us. We can read the signs but we cannot avoid that path alone. We need help. If we do not reach out for help we will isolate ourselves and we will end up alone.

The first thing we have to do is recognize we are in trouble. Lack of praise and prayer in our lives is a sure sign. We need to recognize that in ourselves when it happens. That is not always the easiest thing to do when we are in the middle of the storm.

Remember Isaiah 61:6 you shall be called the priests of the Lord; they shall speak of you as the ministers of our God; and 2 Corinthians 2:7 forgive and comfort him, or he may be overwhelmed by excessive sorrow.

The Word is given to us to help and comfort one another when we cannot find a way to forgive ourselves.

What do we tell the spiritually bankrupt about the “Good News”?

Every question deserves an answer. Any good lawyer will tell you that you never ask a question that you don’t already have the answer prepared.

1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

Before the One who is anointed can be identified to the spiritually bankrupt their hearts need to be broken. It is not our job to break their hearts, but rather to be there to catch them when they collapse. We cannot identify what is going on without gaining their trust by listening to them.

That takes time and patience. 

In the past I saw men standing on the street corner with sandwich signs that said “The End is near.” That message never reached me because the impatience of it said that if it is true, then live it up and do what makes you happy. That was sin. Denying sin makes you feel good is folly.

The brokenhearted have discovered that sin has an insatiable appetite and can never be satisfied. Feeding it is all it wants and it does not give you anything in return. Sin is a consumer and uses up the soul. Only the brokenhearted can truly understand that. They are tired of being used and want to break the cycle of feeding the beast.

This is why gluttony was identified as one of the seven deadliest sins. No matter how much you eat, it does not satisfy the hunger, and destroys the body. That is symbolism that applies to all types of sin. Sin is an addiction and only the brokenhearted are seeking an answer to the problem, how to break the cycle.

The “Good News” is that there is an escape clause that ends the cycle. We were there and we know the way out. Now if only we can gain their trust long enough to give them the answer. The key to that is to love them where they are. Loving sinners requires us to remove all judgment and the language of accusation.

• Ephesians 2:5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—
• Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,

Unmerited favor, do not tell them they have to earn it. Love is free and freeing.