BGCT president: Thanksgiving—the fragrance of the knowledge of God

I love this season of Thanksgiving. It is a wonderful time to reflect on the past year and to recognize how much God has blessed us, even through our struggles.

René MacielIt is hard to believe how much the Apostle Paul endured in his mission trips to share the gospel. Paul had been struggling in the city of Corinth. Five times he had taken 39 lashes, three times he was beaten with rods, once he was stoned and left for dead, and three times he was shipwrecked. He was criticized, pressured and felt defeated.

“We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life” (2 Corinthians 1:8).

But in spite of all those troubles, listen to what Paul said in the following verse: “Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead” (2 Corinthians 1:9).

Then Paul blows us away with his words in 2 Corinthians 2:14: “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him.”

Thanks be to God? Halleluiah, thanks be to God! For the struggles, the heartaches, the difficulties, even the changes in our lives!

As I have grown older and my faith has increased, I have learned to be thankful even for my struggles. That does not mean I like them; they are difficult and tough. In fact, I did not have gray hair when I began working at Baptist University of the Américas! But through all the struggles, God was shaping me. Through all the changes, he was and continues to spread the fragrance of me knowing him.

This year, I am thankful for change. My heart wells up inside when I think about the changes God has allowed in my life, like being a part of BUA. He is doing a new thing at BUA; please keep watch over her and pray for this wonderful university.

I am also thankful for the change of God calling me into full-time ministry in a church. I am so humbled and excited about serving at First Baptist Church of Woodway in Waco. I am praying God will lead me in a triumphant procession in Christ and he will be honored in my service to the body of Christ. I ask that you will keep me in your prayers.

Finally, I am thankful for the daily changes that occur in all of our lives—from a new U.S. president to my old dog dying of cancer. Changes never are easy; I don’t always like them, but, like seasons, they will happen. Through them, like Paul, I am learning to “give thanks to the Father” (Colossians 1:12).

He is leading, and he is in control. I am praying that even through the changes in my life, the fragrance of Christ will bring change to all whom I encounter.

Thanks be to God!

René Maciel completed his second term as president of the Baptist General Convention of Texas this week. He is community life pastor at First Baptist Church of Woodway in Waco.