Now or Never: Daily Promise 27
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“When all kinds of trials and temptations crowd into your lives my brothers, don't resent them as intruders, but welcome them as friends! RealiZE that they come to test your faith and to produce in you the quality of endurance. But let the process go on until that endurance is fully developed, and you will find you have become men of mature character with the right sort of independence.”
James 1:2-4 (Phillips NT)
When God called Abraham to leave his home and family and travel to a land God would give him and make of him a great nation there, he had no idea of the hardships he would encounter on the way. Famine, enemies around him that threatened him and his family, not to mention the trouble within his own family. Still Abraham is called, “The Father of Faith”. From his life we can see that faith doesn’t exempt us from trials and problems.
When we fast forward to the New Testament, we find wise counsel from James on how to handle the troubles of life as we learn to walk by faith. He gives us this promise at the very beginning of his letter. “When all kinds of trials and temptations crowd into your lives my brothers, don't resent them as intruders, but welcome them as friends! Realise that they come to test your faith and to produce in you the quality of endurance. But let the process go on until that endurance is fully developed, and you will find you have become men of mature character with the right sort of independence.” James 1:2-4 (Phillips NT)
James was a pragmatist. He didn’t say “If” but “When all kinds of trials and temptations crowd into your lives….” He was writing to people who got it! They were already experiencing adversity beyond our imagination, yet their faith could thrive in the midst of it and so can yours. James tells us how.
First, he says, “… don’t resent (the trials and temptations that are crowding into your lives) as intruders, but welcome them as friends!” WHAT? Are you nuts? Who welcomes adversity? That’s not a typical response. Pressures weigh us down and trigger some natural responses depending on our personality. My first reaction to problems and trials may be much like yours. Run from them! Resent them! I don’t know how you’re wired but most of us respond to pressure negatively at first. How do you handle pressure and adversity in your life? Deadlines and life’s demands create pressures as well as trials and temptations that often crowd into our lives and test our faith. They feel like intruders! Interruptions! As much as I would like to avoid them, I’m learning that God uses pressure in my life in a positive and faith-building way if I will cooperate and trust Him in the process. When the things we expected to happen don’t happen, we begin to feel the pressure to produce them ourselves or the fear that, maybe, we missed God somewhere. Neither may be the case.
Secondly, James offers another counterintuitive response to adversity that will enable us to thrive! Not only should we welcome it as a friend instead of an intruder, but we should, “Realize (that’s perspective) that they come to test your faith and to produce in you a quality of endurance.”
In other words, God designs the pressures in our lives to develop our faith, to make it stronger so we may learn to thrive in the face of adversity! If we cooperate with the process, there is a spiritual benefit. It’s called “maturity.” It’s part of our development in God’s family as He shapes our character into the image of His Son. This won’t make the pressures go away, but it certainly gives us a better way to handle them.
Since this is not a normal way we respond to adversity I want to suggest you join me in this prayer today and each time you feel the pressure mounting in your life.
God, I need Your help to handle the pressures I’m dealing with right now. Too often, I’ve found myself responding negatively. It affects not only me, but those around me as well. Help me to see how You want to use these pressures to shape my character and produce in me a quality of endurance that grows my faith. Give me a faith that thrives in the face of adversity. I ask this in Your Name and for Your glory!
Another important part of your daily devotional is spending time with God in prayer. The Woodlands Church Prayer Board lists prayer requests submitted by our members and provides a way to send them some encouragement by using a button on the page to let them know that you prayed for them. Whether you use the Prayer Board, or pray from your heart, the goal is to build the habit of incorporating prayer into your quiet time.
Need prayer yourself? Let us know by submitting a prayer request on the Woodlands Church Prayer Board.