Counting It All Joy

It's easy to count circumstances as pure joy when we are happy and grateful, but have you ever been in the middle of a difficult situation and wondered how you could count it all joy? It seems impossible in those moments, doesn't it? And yet, James 1:2-5 tells us to consider it pure joy when we face trials of many kinds.

James 1:2-5 NIV

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously without finding fault, and it will be given to him."

God's perspective is crucial for us being able to view our trials as pure joy.

The Holman Christian Study Bible says that "the command, consider it a great joy, suggests the need for a definite decision to take up a joyful attitude. Believers should react with joy when faced with various trials (tests) because these outward circumstances - whether suffering, troubles, or conflicts - are the means through which God works in believers to prove a perfect faith or build endurance (in the sense of a staying power that surpasses simply 'hanging in there' through afflictions to include a determination to work through difficulties with purpose and focus)."

The testing of your faith is not a means of affliction and destruction but rather a way to refine and purify, to produce a deeper, stronger, more certain faith. Having God's perspective helps you endure and persevere.

Lysa Terkeurst's book The Best Yes says "Wisdom is our silver lining. Wisdom will help us not repeat the mistakes we've made but rather grow stronger through them. How do we find it? We come to the Lord and ask Him for it. We set aside our excuses, our habits, and our justifications and whisper, "I need Your perspective God. I come before You and humbly admit my desperate dependence on You."

One of the most important virtues a Christian may lack is wisdom (knowledge). James refers to this wisdom as Christian enlightenment, which only comes through the work of God in a believer's life since he is the source and giver of wisdom. The idea is more than a temporary solving of difficulties. It includes learning and profiting through challenging experiences.

Lysa says "Trials are working something good in us we can't get any other way. We can find joy in that. If we persevere, we will become mature, complete, and not lacking anything. We can find joy in that." Because it gives us the opportunity to gain wisdom.

So today I want to challenge you to view your circumstances from God's perspective and pay attention to the wisdom you are gaining from your experiences and find the joy in that.

Written by: Jill Theriault

Crossroads Coaching - @crossroadscoachingongodstime