Blessings in Disguise
Tony Schachle
Thankful in Everything • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 55:42
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· 409 viewsWhat are you thankful for? What are some things that God has blessed you with in 2022? What about the difficulties? Have you faced some troubles and trials? Do you know the Bible says we are to be thankful for all things: the good and the bad? That God is working all things out for our good and His glory? What if we stopped looking at all the bad as just trials, and setbacks, and adversities? What if we realized that they might be blessings in disguise? What if God is about to turn our mess into a message! If you've been through some stuff in 2022, or you're facing something right now, tune into this message and let the Word of God bless you and give you a new perspective!
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OPENING
OPENING
What are you thankful for? If we were to go around the room today and give everyone a chance to share what they are most thankful for, I don’t believe we would have a shortage of things to say. Each one of us have so much to be thankful for. It might have been a rough year. Things may not have turned out like we’d hoped. We might not have gotten everything accomplished that we wanted to. Many of us probably gave up on those New Year’s resolutions at least 10 months ago. But no matter how many ups and downs that 2022 has brought us, we all have a lot to be thankful for.
In fact, the Bible teaches us that we are to be Thankful in Everything.
SCRIPTURE
SCRIPTURE
18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
Everything means everything. That means being thankful for the bad as well as the good. You might say, “that’s crazy talk. Why would I be thankful for the bad, the adversity, the trials, the tribulations I go through?” But that is exactly the type of heart that a Christian is supposed to have.
A man by the name of Job understood this concept:
9 Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!” 10 But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God, and shall we not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.
You see, Job learned how to take the bad with the good. Job understood how to be thankful to God despite his circumstances. Job understood the concept of Romans 8:28 even though that verse of Scripture would not be written by Paul for at least another 2000 years.
28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.
All things work together for our good. That means the good, the bad, and the ugly all come together in a giant casserole dish we call life, but after God puts us in the oven and cranks up the the heat of trials and tribulations, and He seasons our life with His grace, we always come out all good on the other side. God is working everything out for your good and His glory!
So that means in life we are going to encounter some Blessings in Disguise. There are going to be some things you are going to have to go through that are not going to make sense while you’re going through it. You’re going to say, “God, I don’t see how any good can come out of this.” You’re going to wonder why God would allow you to end up in such a messed-up place.
You may be like Rebecca, the wife of Isaac. She was unable to have children for several years. God finally answered her prayer and she became pregnant with twins: Esau and Jacob. But she experienced complications during the pregnancy and she cried out to the Lord (I love the King James Version):
Genesis 25:22 (KJV 1900)
22 ...If it be so, why am I thus?...
In other words she was saying, “God, I thought you answered my prayer and gave me the promise. But, if this is supposed to be the answer to my prayer, then why am I suffering and going through such difficulty?” You might be saying the same thing, “If it be so, why am I thus?”
But you’ve got to remember, “all things work together for good.” What if those things you’ve been facing are not just trials, what if they are Blessings in Disguise? What if they are not just setbacks, what if they are Blessings in Disguise? What if you knew that God was about to turn that mess into a message? What if you knew that God was about to turn that test into a testimony? As the song says, “What if the trials of this life, are Your mercies in Disguise?” What if they are Blessings in Disguise?
So as we get ready to celebrate the Thanksgiving season, I thought it would be good for us to think about and give God thanks for, not just the obvious blessings, but also for those Blessings in Disguise. To be Thankful in Everything. This morning we are going to talk about being thankful for Unopened Doors, Unanswered Prayers, and Unexpected Trials.
MESSAGE
MESSAGE
First, Unopened Doors can be Blessings in Disguise.
Unopened Doors
We’ve probably all heard these statements: “If God closes a door, He will open a window.” Or: “If God closes one door, He will open another.” Neither of those statements are actually biblical. You won’t find them in your Bible. You’ll actually hear them in the movie, The Sound of Music.
The truth is that sometimes God shuts doors or leaves doors unopened in our lives.
The Disguise
We can see closed doors as disappointments.
We can see closed doors as “the end.”
But there may be a reason why God is leaving that door closed in your life right now.
7 “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write, ‘These things says He who is holy, He who is true, “He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens”:
The Blessing
An unopened door may mean God is protecting you.
An unopened door may mean God is redirecting you.
An unopened door may mean God is telling you to move on.
Personal example from ministry
Maybe that Unopened Door is actually a Blessing in Disguise!
Second, Unanswered Prayers can be Blessings in Disguise.
Unanswered Prayers
A really famous guy once sang a song about thanking God for unanswered prayers, but based on the lyrics at the beginning of the chorus, apparently he only thanked God sometimes. We are to be Thankful in Everything, and we are to be Thankful Always.
The truth is that sometimes God doesn’t answer our prayers. At least not how and why we want Him to answer.
The Disguise
We can see unanswered prayers as a sign of lack of faith.
We can see unanswered prayers as a sign that God is unconcerned about our need.
But there may be a reason why God hasn’t answered that prayer yet.
3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures.
The Blessing
An unanswered prayer may be God saying that what you think you need is not good for you.
An unanswered prayer may be God saying that the timing is not right.
An unanswered prayer may be God saying that He’s got something else better in mind.
Maybe that Unanswered Prayer is actually a Blessing in Disguise!
James the Less (The Chosen)
And finally, No. 3; Unexpected Trials can be Blessings in Disguise.
Unexpected Trials
When is the last time you asked somebody how they were doing and they responded: “Man, I’m so glad you asked. I had the best trial today. I mean it was epic. It was pure tribulation bliss. I couldn’t believe how difficult it was. It just came out of nowhere. It’s been a long time since I’ve been tried like that and I couldn’t be happier. It made me feel so good. This has been the worst day ever!”
Chances are, unless you know someone who has a sarcastic sense of humor and they’re on a roll that day, you’re probably not going to hear anyone honestly say that. Trials and tribulations are not designed to be enjoyable.
The truth is that sometimes God allows us to endure trials and tribulations.
The Disguise
We can see unexpected trials as a sign that we are doing something wrong.
We can see unexpected trials as a sign we should give up and quit.
But there may be a reason why God is allowing you to go through that trial.
3 And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; 4 and perseverance, character; and character, hope.
The Blessing
Unexpected Trials may be God trying to increase your perseverance.
Taking a Jog
Unexpected Trials may be God trying to improve your character.
Becoming more like Jesus
Unexpected Trials may be God trying to give you more biblical hope.
The difference between biblical faith and biblical hope
Maybe that Unexpected Trial is actually a Blessing in Disguise!
CLOSING
CLOSING
It doesn’t matter if it is an Unopened Door, an Unanswered Prayer, or an Unexpected Trial; they can all be Blessings in Disguise.
Blessings in Disguise might be painful or uncomfortable or even sometimes unbearable. But we should always be thankful, even for Blessings in Disguise. God may be using those Blessings in Disguise to protect us, redirect us, or improve us in some way.
You may not be able to see the good right now from where you stand, but you can be assured that God is working all things in your life out for your good and His glory.
Take James’ advice and count it all joy when difficulties come your way:
2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. 4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
Let patience have its perfect work in your life. Learn to be Thankful in Everything; even those Blessings in Disguise!
ALTAR CALL
ALTAR CALL