{"id":22851,"date":"2014-11-16T00:20:48","date_gmt":"2014-11-16T05:20:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/?p=22851"},"modified":"2014-11-16T10:08:46","modified_gmt":"2014-11-16T15:08:46","slug":"rejoice-pray-give-thanks-repeat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/2014\/11\/16\/rejoice-pray-give-thanks-repeat\/","title":{"rendered":"Rejoice, Pray, Give Thanks, Repeat"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"seekingHimthanksgivinggraphic\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

Rejoice always!
\nPray constantly.
\nGive thanks in everything, for this is God\u2019s will for you in Christ Jesus.
\n1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 HCSB<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

You know that feeling you get when you look at a Scripture passage and think \u201cI already know this stuff!\u201d and then God gives you a head slap and says \u201dOh, yeah? Check this out!\u201d…?<\/p>\n

Yep, just happened to me.<\/p>\n

This passage is one of the staples of Christian life. \u00a0We learn it at a young age. \u00a0It gets used in the hard times. \u00a0We offer it to others in times of distress. \u00a0It becomes a platitude and we cease to think about what it really means.<\/p>\n

I have always looked at this passage as three separate verses— three different directives. \u00a0But today God showed me these are a cycle…meant be used together as stepping-stones.<\/p>\n

Rejoice always<\/span><\/h3>\n

How on earth are we supposed to always have joy? \u00a0There are so many things to worry about or deal with. \u00a0Philippians 4:6 (NLT) gives us a clue:<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything.
\nTell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done.<\/p>\n

Only through prayer are we able to rejoice always<\/span><\/em>. As Charles Spurgeon puts it \u201cThe more praying, the more rejoicing.\u201d \u00a0Joy is not based on our circumstances or emotions. \u00a0Circumstances and emotions change as quickly as the weather. \u00a0But God doesn\u2019t!<\/p>\n

Pray constantly<\/span><\/h3>\n

And just how are we supposed to do that? \u00a0Praying doesn\u2019t mean we have to use our voice, be on our knees, or bow our heads. \u00a0Anytime<\/em> is the right time for prayer. \u00a0Think of prayer as having an ongoing conversation with your best friend. \u00a0Prayer can change our perspective. \u00a0Things we see as trials or struggles may actually be bigger blessings in disguise. \u00a0Prayer gives God the opportunity to help us see life from His perspective. Colossians 4:2 (NASB) tells us:<\/p>\n

Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving.<\/p>\n

Prayer helps us to have an ‘attitude of gratitude.<\/em>‘<\/p>\n

\u00a0Give thanks in everything<\/span><\/h3>\n

Notice it doesn\u2019t say FOR everything or in SOME things. \u00a0We don\u2019t get to pick and choose what suits us. \u00a0We are to be<\/span><\/span> thankful in everything<\/span><\/em>. \u00a0I love this quote by Charles Spurgeon:\u00a0\u201cWhen joy and prayer are married, their firstborn child is gratitude.\u201d<\/p>\n

You may be thinking, \u201cWell, this just takes the cake! How am I supposed to do all this?\u201d Hebrews 13:15 (AMP) holds the key:<\/p>\n

Through Him, therefore, let us constantly and at all times
\noffer up to God a sacrifice of praise,
\nwhich is the fruit of lips
\nthat thankfully acknowledge and confess and glorify His name.<\/p>\n

Through Jesus we are able to do this. It is not we MUST do it because it is God\u2019s will for us; it is we CAN do it because it is God\u2019s will for us. That one little shift in perspective changes everything. It is cycle…a circle of behavior…that never ends.<\/p>\n

Prayer changes our perspective and helps us find joy. \u00a0\u279b<\/span>
\n\u279b<\/span> Joy causes us to rejoice . \u279b<\/span>
\n\u279b<\/span> Rejoicing makes us thankful. \u279b<\/span>
\n\u279b<\/span> When we are thankful we offer up prayer and praise. \u00a0\u279b<\/span>
\n\u279b<\/span> Praying reveals and restores our joy…and round and round we go!<\/p>\n

Now that is one endless circle I don\u2019t mind being a part of!<\/h4>\n

\u00a0 * \u00a0 ~ \u00a0 \u2665 \u00a0 ~ \u00a0 \u271e \u00a0 ~ \u00a0 \u2665 \u00a0 ~ \u00a0 *<\/span><\/p>\n

Lord, thank You for revealing this passage to me in a new light. \u00a0Thank You helping me to see each part is a stepping-stone pointing the way to the next step. \u00a0I rejoice in You, for You have made me glad. \u00a0In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen \u2013 it is so!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rejoice always! Pray constantly. Give thanks in everything, for this is God\u2019s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 HCSB You know that feeling you get when you look at a Scripture passage and think \u201cI already know this stuff!\u201d and then God gives you a head slap and says \u201dOh, yeah? Check […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":164,"featured_media":22736,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3020],"tags":[1394,1875,5889,3367,1287,425,5745,1999,7787,2233,7786,3783,7785,3174,1058,1059],"class_list":["post-22851","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-devotions","tag-1-thessalonians-516-18","tag-colossians-42","tag-cynda-cottrill","tag-daily-devotions-2","tag-gch","tag-girlfriends-coffee-hour","tag-give-thanks","tag-gratitude","tag-in-everything-give-thanks","tag-philippians-46","tag-pray-constantly","tag-rejoice","tag-rejoice-always","tag-seeking-him-devotional","tag-thankfulness","tag-thanksgiving","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/seekingHimthanksgivinggraphic.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p39pHp-5Wz","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22851","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/164"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22851"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22851\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22856,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22851\/revisions\/22856"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22736"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22851"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22851"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/girlfriendscoffeehour.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22851"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}