Thankful in Economic Uncertainty
Mark A. Taylor reflects on gratitude during a season of financial crisis, drawing from Sam Stone, Rick Warren, Karen Blumenthal, and Paul’s words about God’s riches. The article encourages Christians to remain thankful regardless of changing bank balances, retirement accounts, or economic conditions.
- Economic uncertainty does not cancel the Christian call to gratitude.
- Rick Warren’s counsel points believers toward praise, seeking, worship, trust, and thanks in every circumstance.
- Paul’s words remind Christians that God’s riches in Christ remain available regardless of personal finances.
By Mark A. Taylor
When Sam Stone wrote this week’s “Reflections” column earlier this fall, he couldn’t have known a cataclysmic financial crisis and stock market roller coaster would become headlines. But his advice rings true as we finish this issue and the country remains in the throes of economic uncertainty. No one in October is predicting what the state of the economy will be by the Thanksgiving holiday. (Except, that is, to say that retailers are bracing for less than usual consumer spending in December.) If the situation has righted itself by the time you read this, we’ll all be grateful.
And if the economy is still ailing and retirement accounts are still dwindling and house values are still falling? Sam’s advice applies then too: we can still be grateful.
In Every Moment, Thank God
Twice in the days just after Congress’s financial “bailout” failed to prevent a stock market free fall, I heard speakers share the following quote by Rick Warren. It is his prescription for our relationship with God, regardless of the circumstances:
In happy moments, praise God.
In difficult moments, seek God.
In quiet moments, worship God.
In painful moments, trust God.
In every moment, thank God.
Sam Stone’s advice parallels his, as does the conclusion of Karen Blumenthal, writing in The Wall Street Journal, October 8. Urging readers not to worry about a repeat of the 1930s Depression, she concluded this way.
This is my reality check: For more than a decade, I have gone to my local elementary school to tutor. There I spend time reading with children who own no books of their own, whose families can’t afford school supplies and who have never been to a dentist. For the price of 45 minutes a week, I return to my desk feeling as wealthy as any one person needs to be.
Riches That Remain
We may not be as well-off as we used to be or as wealthy as we’d like to be. But most of us reading this magazine are in the world’s affluent minority.
But even the beggar living in a hovel, if he is a Christian, can be encouraged by Paul, who referred again and again to the riches of God’s wisdom (Romans 11: 33), grace (Ephesians 1:7), and kindness (Romans 2:4). Because of the faithful service of the Philippians, Paul told them God would meet all their needs “according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.”
Whatever our bank balance or personal circumstance, we can tap into those riches. And for that, “in every moment,” we can remain thankful.
Author: Mark A. Taylor
Mark A. Taylor, who served as Christian Standard editor from 2003 to 2017, retired in June 2017 after almost 41 years with Standard Publishing (Christian Standard Media).
