What I'm thankful for

At a recent family prayer, we were asked what we were thankful for. All of us had to take a turn answering, from the little kids to all the adults. It was fascinating to hear how different the concept of thankfulness was from generation to generation. There were some common threads; everyone was thankful for family, for parents, for God and for each other. But the older ones tended to be more abstract, as expected, thanking God for the fellowship and fealofani that our family shares. They were thankful for the seed of service and love of God and family that our parents and their parents instilled in our family. Of course the little ones were thankful for clothes, food and TVs -Again, as expected.

When it came to my turn, I stated that I was thankful for all these things, but added that I was thankful for challenges. I said that it is through challenges, actually I think trials was the word I used, that we grow the most. And I believe that fervently. When my niece Salina passed away three years ago, my brother Sivia testified at her funeral that he considered our family a blessed family. Here was his reasoning. He said that God tests those that He is preparing to do His work. He therefore surmised that God had been preparing us for His purposes. He also stated that in testing, a person grows stronger. Their faith can either be solidified or it can crumble. Thankfully, our faith was made even stronger seeing that God had seen us through that horrible experience.

I look at so many trials going on in our lives. Our mother was hospitalized earlier this month with some serious health concerns. One of the founding members of our church, a pillar in our community, had a second heart attack in recent years. And who knows what's in store for the rest of the year. But one thing is for sure - Christ has promised us that He will not put us through anything we can't endure. Paul summed it up best when he said to consider it pure joy to be put to the test, because trials produces perseverance, and perseverance solidifies faith. Remember, if Jesus not only puts you in the storm, but is in it with you.