James 1: 2 – 8 (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 to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.
We must realize that the abundant life will have sunshine and rain. It will have the full range of emotions, but joy comes when we realize that everything is working together for our good and for God's glory. Joy is not the absence of pain, it is the presence of God. The land needs sunshine and rain and our spirits need beautiful moments, yes, but also trials of many kinds.
Why? James says the trials that test our faith make us stronger because each test develops perseverance, which, in turn, makes us more mature. The reason he says to consider it pure joy when we face trials is because he knew there were no shortcuts to maturity – the only path is through perseverance.
And it is a good thing to be mature. That is a goal we all should strive for. Maturity keeps us from saying things that hurt us and others. Maturity keeps us from riding the ups and downs of happiness like a runaway roller coaster. Maturity reminds us that God is in control and, therefore, we do not have to worry. Maturity gives us a strong, God-pleasing faith that does not waver.
Will we always be happy? Of course not and the Bible never promises that. What it promises is that we can have joy despite our circumstances. Joy is that constant reminder that we are walking with God. It is the sanity in an insane world.
Joy is having hope that it is going to be okay. Perhaps the best gift our faith gives us in this life is hope. We know that this life is only our temporary home; we know that God is in control; we know that paradise awaits. We can smile through the hurricanes of life and in the eye of the storm because of the hope we have. That gives us joy and takes us well on our way toward the abundant life.
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