Let’s be real, this is not a fun verse! Pure joy in the commercials that I’ve grown up with look like children bouncing in a sea of bubbles. Far from harm. No chance of danger. Permeated with laughter. This is not the kind of picture that James is painting here. He is talking about trials (adversity, affliction, or trouble sent by God to test or demonstrate the truth of one’s faith).
I’ve both heard about and experienced the clarity of hindsight. In hindsight, I can say that the trials I have faced have produced patience, joy (that happiness that comes from within) at times, and certainly an impassioned loyalty to the Lord. But that is in hindsight. I can honestly say that I’m still not mature enough in my faith to be doing a “happy dance” when can see the trouble coming, nor even when I’m in the middle of it. At best it’s a humble gratitude.
This poor clematis has managed to survive in a severely neglected flower bed. There was an overgrowth of ground cover, an evergreen bush, lovely spring flowers that were out of control, a nice variety of weeds, and even a bit of poison ivy. Buried underneath all of this was the forgotten clematis with no trellis to climb, hardly a drop of sunshine or air to breath. It not only persevered in terrible conditions it even managed a few blossoms, albeit covered with debris.
The Lord very much wants us to be strong in our faith, to be tested, proven, ready for battle like any loving parent preparing, testing, and trying their kids skill levels to help their child grow in confidence and experience.
The very thought of this should create joy, right? It is very easily said, and is true, but I’m not in the middle of a trial.
So what should we do when the trial does come? In my experience so far I have found it helpful to:
- Be grateful. It may not seem at all logical but trust God and be grateful for something. Write down something that you are grateful for every day, or as often as you need to in order that you keep moving forward through the trial.
- Learn something about yourself and/or about God. Write these new truths down and go back to number one to repeat the process!
