Thankful After The Storm

Our basement is drying out and there is no longer a small lake in our front yard. Monday June 16th 2014 was definitely an eventful- as well as discouraging- day as water ran into buildings and blocked or washed out roads. Twenty two years earlier when I lived in Murray county in southwest Minnesota, that same day was also discouraging. Many farms as well as the towns of Chandler and Lake Wilson were hit by numerous tornados on June 16th, 1992. Therefore, as I look back a couple of weeks and a couple of decades on the date of June 16th, I cannot help but think of disaster.
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During times of disaster it is easy to complain. Why didn’t the people who built our houses put more tile and larger sump pumps in the basement? Why don’t the stores stock an extra 10,000 sump pumps? Why can’t the county workers fix the road I want to drive on even though there are many other roads that are washed out as well, and the road I want to go on is still 3 feet under water?
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Instead of complaining we should actually be thankful. Our area experienced terrible flooding, but people in Nebraska had their homes leveled by powerful tornados. In other words, it could be worse.
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What about those county and city workers who did not seem to care about my road or the water in my neighborhood? Did we remember to thank them for the long hours that they were putting as they fought a losing battle to keep ahead of the water? The evidence is clear that they lost that battle, but it was a battle that no one could have won. We had some terrible flooding here in Worthing, but I was amazed how much better things looked the next day after the rain had stopped and I am thankful for the city workers and firemen who quickly pumped water away so things could dry up and get back to normal.
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I once heard that thankful people tend to be much more successful than complainers. Though thankfulness can help with success, there is an even more important reason to be thankful- God told us to. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 NKJV says, “in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” It is hard to give thanks when your home is flooded or destroyed by a tornado. That is why it is important to let the peace of God rule in our hearts, realizing we can trust Him even when we do not understand why these things are happening. “And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” (Colossians 3:15-17 NKJV)
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Regardless of our circumstances and regardless of what we are doing, we should be thankful toward God and we should be encouraging each other with our examples of thankfulness. “Giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,” (Ephesians 5:20 NKJV).
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The next time you are tempted to complain, be thankful instead. Remember to pray and thank God and then remember to thank those around for what they have done.