Everybody knows that COVID-19 affected the world in a way that this generation has never seen before. People lost jobs and livelihoods. Businesses were closed. People were barred even from going out of their homes. Churches were prevented from gathering, and if ever they were allowed to gather, they were forced to limit the number of attendees. Some churches were even told to stop singing.
That said, the Bible still tells God's people to be thankful in all circumstances. It also gives several examples on how and why people should be thankful. Here's a quick look at some situations and reasons why people should be thankful:
Thanksgiving in spite of loss
If there's one person in the Bible who knows how it feels to lose the ones he loved and that which he cherished, it's got to be Job. The Bible described Job as "blameless and upright, and one who feared God and shunned evil" (Job 1:1).
A few verses later, the Bible says he lost all of his property, his servants, and worse, his children. Then, he suffered from painful boils. His wife, the only person who could encourage him, then told him, "Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!" (Job 2:9). His friends came to encourage him, but ended up blaming him for the evil that happened to him, without seeing it was Satan who did it.
Job never uttered a word against God in spite of all these. He praised God after losing his property and children (Job 1:21). He did not say anything against God even after what his wife told him (Job 2:10). And though he went through a lot of anguish, he never cursed God for it. In the end, when he had repented, he was blessed with more than what he had lost (Job 42).
Thanksgiving in the face of uncertainty
COVID-19 has affected human lives in such a way that many do not know what will happen in the future. The Bible, however, declares that God is both the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end (Rev. 1:8), and that He declares the end from the beginning (see Isaiah 46:9-10).
God knows the future, and He assures those who are in Christ and those who love Him and are called to His purpose that whatever happens, He will turn it for their good (Romans 8:28). There is nothing that can separate God's children from the love of Christ (Romans 8:35-39). No one can snatch them out from the Father's hand (John 10:29).
Because of this, Christians will always have a reason to thank God. No matter what happens in the future, no matter how uncertain tomorrow may be, one thing is for sure: He will never leave His children (Deuteronomy 31:6, Hebrews 13:5).
Thanksgiving for God's faithfulness
Everybody has sinned one way or another. The good news is that while all have sinned, God sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to save all men from sin and reconcile them to the Father by His atoning death on the cross and his resurrection three days later (Romans 6:23, 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, Ephesians 2:4-9).
Romans 5:8 says that "God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." No one could say that he is sinless before God (1 John 1:8). Even those who deny the absolute truth of God cannot say they are righteous (Psalm 14:1-3). Yet, Christ died for all sinful men so that He could redeem them and reconcile them with God.
God sent His only begotten Son to save sinful man, and that includes everyone (John 3:16-17). And those who believe in Him, have repented of their sin, and follow Him as Lord are now children of God in Christ (John 1:12). For this very reason alone -being a child of God- Christians should not stop giving thanks to God.
