Simply Beautiful
Join Amy Keck each week as she shares the simple wisdom of Scripture, entwined with the beauty of poetry.
Simply Beautiful
An Uncomplaining Heart
Join Amy Keck as she explores what it means to have an "uncomplaining heart" through the lens of 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 and her father's battle with ALS. Amy shares powerful insights about finding joy in difficult circumstances after witnessing her father's remarkable response to his terminal diagnosis.
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Welcome to Simply Beautiful Podcast. This is Amy Keck. Thank you for joining me today. The topic today is an uncomplaining heart. 1 Thessalonians 5, 16-18 says Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. Well, I have spent the past almost two years watching my dad live with ALS. He was diagnosed with this horrific disease on July 19th of 2022. I vividly remember leaving the doctor's office in silence, getting into the back seat of my parents' car and watching my dad turn to us and say well, praise the Lord, let me pray. I then listened as my dad thanked God for all that God had brought into his life, and that day will forever be sealed in my memory because I literally watched my dad live out. 1 Thessalonians 5, 16 through 18. You know you can have an uncomplaining heart when you rejoice always, pray continually and give thanks in all circumstances.
Speaker 1:So what does it mean to rejoice always? I thought I'd begin by giving us the simple definition of these two words. Of these two words To rejoice, according to Merriam-Webster dictionary, means to give joy to, or to feel great delight in, or to possess joy. The word always means at all times, invariably, forever or in any event. So this verse is literally telling us to give joy at all times, to any and all events in our life. Well, how is this even possible? How is it possible to rejoice when you have been diagnosed with a terminal illness? How is it possible to rejoice when someone you love abandons you? How is it possible to rejoice when chaos surrounds our world? How is it possible to rejoice when everything we touch turns to mush and not gold? Well, we must start with confidence, because God would not tell us to rejoice always if it were not actually possible to do so. You see, we have a powerful and a generous God who gives us exactly what we need. So if God says rejoice always, period, he must be willing to give us the power to rejoice. In John 15, 9 through 11, jesus says as the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. So to attribute joy at all times, to any and all events in our life is really a powerful working of the Holy Spirit, but it is also a choice a choice to obey and let the power of God flow out of us as we attribute joy to even the most devastating events in our life. And then we pray. So what does it mean to pray continually? I really don't think we need to be Bible scholars to understand this command. It means pray continually.
Speaker 1:I've had ample opportunity to display this to my four-year-old daughter, especially the past couple of years. You know, things happen throughout our day that really upset me, and God gives me the opportunity to pray. Milk is spilt. I can either complain or pray. Objects get broken. I can complain or pray. Feelings are hurt I can complain or pray.
Speaker 1:This list could literally go on forever, and I don't always get it right. Sometimes I lose my temper, react in frustration or simply act like a little brat, and then God gives me other opportunities to seek forgiveness. But on the days and in the moments that I obey God, the days I pray for peace, pray for wisdom, pray for emotional maturity or spiritual maturity, emotional maturity or spiritual maturity, those are the days that my heart is full. It's full of gratitude to my sweet Savior that he helped me to grow up a little bit more that day and to also model to my daughter what it means to ask God for help in any and all circumstances. And you know, I have found that the real joy comes whenever I hear her in the backseat say, mama, you need to ask God for wisdom, or Mama, should you ask God for some patience? You know, even a little child can understand what it means to have an uncomplaining heart, and they can also learn what it means to have an uncomplaining heart and they can also learn what it means to give thanks in all circumstances. So what does it mean to give thanks in all circumstances? You know, I believe it is in thankfulness, in the small circumstances of life, the little things, the little things that don't go our way, those are the things that make us able to face large circumstances with thankfulness. It's really training if you think about it.
Speaker 1:You know, I can look back at my dad as a shining example of what it means to be thankful in all circumstances. My dad has lived the majority of his days with thankfulness. Almost every prayer that my dad has ever prayed has held the line we are thankful for you, lord, we need you. We owe our very lives to you. You know, my dad hasn't lived his life complaining about traffic. He hasn't lived his life complaining about family, co-workers or friends. He hasn't lived his life complaining about family, co-workers or friends. He hasn't lived his life with a chip on his shoulder waiting for the next person to flick it off. My dad has lived a thankful life. In some respect, he's trained himself for thankfulness. So when he was diagnosed with ALS, it wasn't strange for me to hear him tell Jesus, thank you, praise you. You know, it was just an overflow of a life that rejoices always, a life that has prayed continually and a life that really does give thanks in all circumstances.
Speaker 1:So if you find that you have a complaining heart, I'd like to encourage you to do three things First of all, identify a specific event in your life that you've been complaining about and find one thing, just one, one thing to rejoice over concerning this event. Second, ask God to give you an uncomplaining heart surrounding this event. And third, thank God that he is allowing this event to deepen your dependence upon him and allow you to put your trust in him. And I'd really like to leave you with one of my poems entitled Detour Through the Desert. I hope it encourages you. Today A little tiny flower bloomed in desert lands. You see, a tiny, little yellow flower where many men don't see. It hid behind a lonely place, a place where few do roam. It found its joy below a rusted pipe and it sheltered there below Drip, drip, drip, drip. It truly lacked for none. The pipe supplied a tiny drink. The drops fell one by one, stooping closer to observe, peering into its golden face. Tiny flower, what is your name? No-transcript.
