Rejoicing in all circumstances

I have always found that command to "rejoice in all circumstances" odd.

I have never really understood how we can be thankful to God when things are really bad.

Rejoicing in all circumstances is probably the opposite of self-pity. And self-pity is such an ungodly and unattractive quality, isn't it?

Blessed Be His Name is my favourite song. "...blessed be Your name on the road marked with suffering, Though there's pain in the offering, Blessed be Your name".

But am I really thankful, truely joyful, in times of great pain? No, I don't think I am. It is counter-intuiative. I lapse into self-pity. Wanting to know the reason why. Unless I can understand the reason for my pain, it seems to be in vain.

A woman in childbirth certainly isn't enjoying the experience, the pain of the moment, but she may be rejoicing that God has blessed her with this great miracle of new life.

I know that God is sovereign in all things. I know that he loves me. I know that he has called me to be His daughter. I know my salvation is assured. I know that he will glorify me.

I know that he is changing me to become more like Christ. How does he do this? Through the experiences, circumstances, emotions, relationships in my life. If my pain is making me more like Christ then I can rejoice. I can rejoice in all circumstances - good, bad, boring, challenging, mundane, painful, because I know that my sovereign God is using them to mould me into the woman He intends me to be. A Christ-like woman.

So let me praise God for all the things in my life. How wonderful, how gracious, how awesome is our God!

Romans 8: 28- 30

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.