Since I’ve moved back to Seattle I have begun to attend The City Church. It’s a somewhat larger church and harder to connect just on Sundays and so I decided to get involved in a small group Women’s bible study, and we are doing a study through James. We are following an actual book study by Beth Moore titled ‘James, Mercy Triumphs’. It was a complete blind step to attend a bible study showing up not knowing a single person, but I did it, and I am so happy I did because the women are so great and all very different so the perspectives are so cool to learn from each of them.
Anyways, beginning this study on James has been so full of good but challenging teachings.
James 1:1-3 says, “count it all joy my brothers when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect that you may be perfect and complete lacking in nothing.”
This is quite a common and well known scripture but Beth Moore helped this come alive for me so I can apply what it means to my own life.
In other translations the first part says, “consider it pure joy…” So this is saying we have a choice to consider having Joy in the various trials that come in life. It seems an unlikely choice to make when you are struggling financially, or when relationships within family bring you pain. Why should we consider having Joy in these trials? Because at the end of every trial we are a little bit more like Jesus, He is perfecting us. He is using every situation to fulfill his purpose in our lives.
In the book Beth goes on to explain that when we are in Christ any trial that we fall into cannot rob us. She used the example in Luke 10:30 when a man fell into the hands of robbers and was beat up and left on the side of the road. She was saying how sometimes trials leave us feeling beat up and bruised and defeated, but when we are in Christ though we may feel that way we can count it still as a win because we know that through it all God is perfecting us.
Steadfastness is produced through the trials. When we feel too beat to keep going, we have to choose to keep our tenacity, we have to stay dedicated, devoted, and committed to God in the midst of it. Well we don’t have to, but we have a choice to. At least we should consider it when life hands us some exhausting mountains to climb. I’d say what else should we consider knowing what God is up to as we fight the battles and climb the mountains? Should we instead complain, should we lose faith, or should we stop believing in the power of God? OR should we really try our best to consider the joy it is to live a life that is totally surrendered to a God who has a desire for us to live fulfilled in Him.
God does things differently than we do, I’ve realized recently. Well of course he does but it’s becoming more real to me that even though he does things differently and doesn’t usually tell me how he is going to do it, he still places the most value on our relationship. He moves in situations in a way that will ultimately grow us closer together. For me he does that by offering me peace, he comforts me in the thick of a hard decision, he reminds me of who he is when I feel like nothing is possible. He allows the challenges to come, but never leaves my side, and he is speaking truth into me that I can overcome any trial that I face because I have him.
For me this is reason to consider that even though the trial leaves me feeling beat up, and defeated, I can remain steadfast, because God is my source of stability and I will never be without him.
Anyways, beginning this study on James has been so full of good but challenging teachings.
James 1:1-3 says, “count it all joy my brothers when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect that you may be perfect and complete lacking in nothing.”
This is quite a common and well known scripture but Beth Moore helped this come alive for me so I can apply what it means to my own life.
In other translations the first part says, “consider it pure joy…” So this is saying we have a choice to consider having Joy in the various trials that come in life. It seems an unlikely choice to make when you are struggling financially, or when relationships within family bring you pain. Why should we consider having Joy in these trials? Because at the end of every trial we are a little bit more like Jesus, He is perfecting us. He is using every situation to fulfill his purpose in our lives.
In the book Beth goes on to explain that when we are in Christ any trial that we fall into cannot rob us. She used the example in Luke 10:30 when a man fell into the hands of robbers and was beat up and left on the side of the road. She was saying how sometimes trials leave us feeling beat up and bruised and defeated, but when we are in Christ though we may feel that way we can count it still as a win because we know that through it all God is perfecting us.
Steadfastness is produced through the trials. When we feel too beat to keep going, we have to choose to keep our tenacity, we have to stay dedicated, devoted, and committed to God in the midst of it. Well we don’t have to, but we have a choice to. At least we should consider it when life hands us some exhausting mountains to climb. I’d say what else should we consider knowing what God is up to as we fight the battles and climb the mountains? Should we instead complain, should we lose faith, or should we stop believing in the power of God? OR should we really try our best to consider the joy it is to live a life that is totally surrendered to a God who has a desire for us to live fulfilled in Him.
God does things differently than we do, I’ve realized recently. Well of course he does but it’s becoming more real to me that even though he does things differently and doesn’t usually tell me how he is going to do it, he still places the most value on our relationship. He moves in situations in a way that will ultimately grow us closer together. For me he does that by offering me peace, he comforts me in the thick of a hard decision, he reminds me of who he is when I feel like nothing is possible. He allows the challenges to come, but never leaves my side, and he is speaking truth into me that I can overcome any trial that I face because I have him.
For me this is reason to consider that even though the trial leaves me feeling beat up, and defeated, I can remain steadfast, because God is my source of stability and I will never be without him.