Enduring Trials

Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways (James 1:2-8).

The key to enduring a trial with joy is absolute trust in the divine sovereignty of God and His love for you. Trials come into our lives to produce endurance. What kind of endurance? Endurance of faith for one thing. The passage actually says, “the testing of your faith produces endurance.”

The second important thing to understand is that God has not left you without a resource. He bids you to ask for wisdom, and has promised to answer. What would be important to learn from a trial? Perhaps,why you are in the trial. Maybe, God just wants you to learn to trust Him in every situation.

One thing is certain; it is designed to bring you to maturity or completeness in Christ. The prayer of faith will provide wisdom to endure the trial with joy. That joy is achieved by total trust in the love of God. Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding (Proverbs 3:5).