Episode 557

TODAY’S READING

2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds,

3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.

4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

James 1:2-4

We are to meet those challenges with joy because it is when we are challenged that our faith is tested, and when our faith is tested, we will produce steadfastness, and we allow selflessness to have its full effect on us and our hearts. We become complete; we become perfect lacking nothing. Now that is the literal definition of life. In every season of life. We will be met with various trials, no matter if it’s a good season or a bad season. There will always be some challenges; there will always be some growth because, in those challenges, God continues to stretch as he continues to test our faith; he continues to allow us to go deeper in him. 

Now the NIV is a little bit different. And it uses a word that I love, and it says Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. This is a beautiful verse that we can hold on to. It is almost a daily occurrence some challenge some trial that faces you. Right now, I’m in a great season. I just got married by the core of having my wedding in December. I’m planning I’m on cloud nine—this weekend. I picked up my wedding dress. This last week I made my registry. I’m so excited about my registry, and at the same time, I am my grandfather’s power of attorney, and he has been in the hospital for the last six weeks. And it has been a hard season trying to get him the best care making sure that he’s seen the best doctors. If he goes from one hospital to one rehab center and from one rehab center back to the hospital. Is he being taken care of? Is he walking? Is he talking? What is his cognitive behavior? 

There are many different moving pieces. So God is stretching me as he always does. And I welcome it with all the joy in my heart because I know that it is in these moments of stretch that my faith deepens and my walk with Christ deepens; he’s on my personal walks with him, and so you have your journey with him. You have your trials. And so my encouragement to you is no matter what season you’re in, may you face those trials with pure joy because he is continuing to shape you. He is continuing to mold you, and he is such a good father. So we thank him. We open our all arms wide, ask him to continue to allow us to move in our lives, and then we continue to grow deeper in our faith with him.

Prayer:

Father God, we do Consider it pure joy, Lord; we know that the challenges we know that pushing through are not so fun. Sometimes, we don’t want to be pushed anymore, Lord, sometimes, we’re at a breaking point, and we ask what else can go wrong? What else can we face? But Lord, can we take a step back when we take a breather? We see that it is just the testing of our faith. And we understand that when our faith is tested, it produces steadfastness. It produces perseverance, and we allow that to do work in us. We notice that we not only gain wisdom, but we come to maturity, we gain completion, and we know that we are in this ever-evolving. Walk with you that we may lack nothing because we have you at the center leading us through it all. We thank you for this beautiful day, and we ask that you bless it. It is in your holy name that we pray today and every day. Amen.