1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

I’ve always focused on the word everything in this verse. It was my way of dealing with bad experiences. I thought if bad things happened to me, then it was God’s will. I was wrong.

Here is God’s will for us; to be joyous, to pray, to be thankful. God does not will bad things to happen to His people. We do however have to suffer the consequences of our choices in life. It is not God’s fault if we did not seek His counsel before making those choices.

Some of the bad stuff happens because we are human, frail, and time has its way with us. That isn’t God’s will for us either. His will is for us to remain joyous, prayerful and thankful despite the circumstances. The way we respond to adversity marks us as being His.

Life has scarred me. Not as bad as others I grant you, but I haven’t escaped this life without some wounds. My joy is that I have not gone through them alone. He has been with me through it all. I pray because I can. I am thankful and give Him praise because He is worthy.

My takeaway here is this. It isn’t God’s will that bad things happen to you. It is His will that those things do not lessen the love He has placed in you.