"Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not put out the Spirit’s fire. Do not treat prophecies with contempt but test them all; hold on to what is good..." [1 Thessalonians 5:16-21]
Moses gained a purpose and mission when he encountered a burning bush, which seemed to be encased in fire but not burnt up. The early church received the gift of the Holy Spirit when "tongues of fire" moved from person to person. Now, spiritually mature people recognize when the Spirit is moving...it's a tangible presence more than a feeling. The Spirit is present when a person who is facing trials and tribulations can still sing praises to God and offer up prayers of thanksgiving. The Spirit is present when there is spiritual growth in the midst of suffering.
Do I thank God that my son was born with autism? Yes, for it was because of that autism that forced me to teach him about God in concrete terms, which solidified my own faith....and Sam's. Do I thank God that, through Him, I survived a marriage that was filled with domestic violence and abuse? Yes...because through that, God has blessed me with a witness and testimony to help others.
It is in remembering what God has done in the past that we can look forward to the future with faith and certainity. It's when we don't remember that we run into problems. It's when we cast off the past completely and try to fix things ourselves that we run into a wall, and douse water on the Spirit's fire. Psalm 106 recounts the Hebrews journey from Egypt and remembers what the Lord did. The Psalm also recounts the sin of the Hebrews in not making the Lord their God, the Lord their God. But despie all this, "...He took note of their distress when he heard their cry; for their sake he remembered his covenant and out of his great love he relented" [Psalm 106:44-45].
So what do we do? We rejoice, we pray, we give thanks in all circumstances, we do not put out the Spirit's fire, we question, and we hold to what is good.
