Always be joyful.
Never stop praying.
Be thankful in all circumstances,
for this is God’s will
for you who belong to Christ Jesus.
I Thessalonians 5:16-18

“…Thankful in all circumstances“.  I think sometimes we get this mixed up with thankful for all circumstances.  This also corresponds with being content in all circumstances—not content for all circumstances.  We are going to go through some things in our lives that we should not be thankful for, but we can be thankful during the process. God does not want us to be thankful for cancer, but we can be thankful to Him while we have cancer.

God is a good God.  He will not bring anything into our lives that is not good.  God can do no wrong.  God does not make mistakes.  This being said…God is not the only being that brings things in and out of our lives.  Satan puts things in our lives.  Deception is something that Satan is very good at.  He was able to deceive Adam and Eve in the Garden, and to this day he still works to deceive mankind.  Not only this, but the consequences of our own actions brings unfavorable things into our lives.

What I’m saying is that the Bible clearly says,

Every good and perfect gift is from above,
coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights,
Who does not change like shifting shadows.
James 1:17

The Bible also clearly says,

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy;
I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
John 10:10

Very simply put: Good God — bad devil.

Thank God for ALL the good He has done in your life. You can thank God for bringing you through the bad in your life. You can thank God for turning a bad situation into a good situation. God can bring good out of bad. God can show you the error of your way(s) in bad situations and use His word to teach you the correct way…but God does not do bad. Do not thank God for the bad you have in your life, but be thankful to God during these times—because God is good.