Trials and Joy

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds. James 1:2

God is telling you: “When you experience setbacks, disappointments, heartbreaks, count it all joy. When you have car trouble, when the refrigerator breaks down, rejoice. When you have chronic back pain, when you lose your job, when you hear the diagnosis of cancer, give thanks. In all these times of pain and suffering, count it all joy. Be glad, give thanks, rejoice, bring praise to me. Don’t complain, whine, grumble, groan or grow bitter. Instead, count it all joy!”

Let me ask you: Do you do this? Are you doing it right now with whatever challenge or setback you are facing?

This response to suffering is exceedingly rare. It sounds crazy. But this is God’s clear command, both in this passage and in other passages such as Romans 5:3, Philippians 4:4 and 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18.

Why does God command us to count every trial as a joy? Simply because God is God and he will redeem every trial and bring good out of it for his people. James 1:3 goes on to say: “For you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.” Romans 8:28 gives us the sure promise: “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good.” God uses suffering to produce endurance, to build faith, to shape our souls, to grow our hearts.

John Piper once wrote:

This is not a little piece of advice about the power of positive thinking. This is an utterly radical, abnormal, supernatural way to respond to suffering. It is not in our power. It is not for the sake of our honor. It is the way spiritual aliens and exiles live on the earth for the glory of the great King. ¹

David McCullough has written a classic biography of John Adams, our second President, in which he records this experience:

John Adams said he has “an immense load of errors, weaknesses, follies and sins to mourn over and repent of.” These were “the only affliction” of his present life. But St. Paul taught him to rejoice ever more and be content. “This phrase ‘rejoice ever more’ shall never be out of my heart, memory or mouth again as long as I live.” ²

This is God’s will for us, that in every trial, we count it all joy. Because we know God is at work, redeeming the suffering for our sake. This phrase should never be out of our heart, memory or mouth again as long as we live.

¹ John Piper, Desiring God: “Why We Can Rejoice in Suffering,” 10.23.1994.

2 David McCullough, John Adams, 591.

© 2014 WoodsEdge Community Church. All rights reserved. This article may be reproduced for any non-commercial use.

New Creation

Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Colossians 3:12-13

If we are in Christ we are new creatures and we must live like it. We cannot live like we once lived because we are not the people we once were.

In Colossians 3 God gives us eight traits that are to characterize this new life. But first, he reminds us of our new identity. We are God’s chosen ones, chosen and adopted by the Father. That God chose us reminds us that God loves us. We are special to God. Moreover, we are holy. We are saints. We are blameless before God because we are in Christ. And then, we are beloved, beloved by God. We are the objects of the Father’s tender affection.

With this assurance of our new identity, we are ready to adopt these eight traits, to firmly and decisively live this way.

Firstly, live with a compassionate heart. Care about people. Care about suffering. Care about hurts. See people as God sees them.

Secondly, put on kindness. Kindness in your voice, kindness in your smile, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your touch, kindness in your actions.

Thirdly, take on humility. Humble yourself. Focus on Christ and others, not yourself. Lie low and exalt Jesus.

Fourthly, live with meekness. Be gentle, not harsh or demanding. Be tender with people.

Fifthly, take on patience. Choose to be easy to live with, not irritable, difficult, or quick-tempered.

Sixthly, bear with one another. Be patient with people. Don’t fly off the handle. Choose to let some things go.

Seventhly, forgive one another. Choose to forgive the person who has wronged you. Make the choice. Because God has forgiven you. Let them off the hook.

Eighthly, put on love. All seven of the previous traits are about love. Love is the bottom line. “And above all these put on love which binds everything together in perfect harmony” (3:14).

You can live this way, characterized by all eight of these traits. You can live this way and you must live this way. Brook no excuse. Depend on Christ’s power to obey the Lord and live out these eight traits.

© 2014 WoodsEdge Community Church. All rights reserved. This article may be reproduced for any non-commercial use.

Hear,Speak,Anger

Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger. James 1:19

One short verse, three power-packed principles. These three axioms are so simple that most people miss them. Most people do the opposite – they are slow to listen, quick to speak, quick to get angry. But not the wise man or woman! Wise people are quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger. Just like Christ was.

Firstly, be quick to hear. The first responsibility of love is listening. People are starved to be heard and understood. If we listen to people, really listen to people with our full attention, those people will feel so loved by us. So simple, yet so powerful.

Paul Tournier once wrote:

“It is impossible to overemphasize the immense need humans have to be really listened to, to be taken seriously, to be understood. No one can develop freely in this world and find the full life without feeling understood by at least one person.

“Listen to all the conversations of our world, between nations as well as those between couples. They are for the most part dialogues of the deaf.”

Secondly, be slow to speak. If we are always talking, then we won’t be listening. And that’s what people need from us, not our words, but our ears. Besides, if we are hasty in our words, it is likely that we will say things we regret.

Alan McGinnis relates an anecdote on the difference between a talker and a listener:

“A young woman was taken to dinner one night by William E. Gladstone, the distinguished British statesman, and the following night by Benjamin Disraeli, his equally distinguished opponent. Asked later what impression these two celebrated men had made on her, she replied thoughtfully: ‘When I left the dining room after sitting next to Mr. Gladstone, I thought he was the cleverest man in England. But after sitting next to Mr. Disraeli, I thought I was the cleverest woman in England.’”

Finally, be slow to anger. Not quick-tempered. Not irritable. Not oversensitive. But slow to anger. Decide that you will not erupt with anger but you will give people the benefit of the doubt. You ask questions to clarify what people mean. You have a long fuse.

This is wisdom. Quick to hear. Slow to speak. Slow to anger.

© 2014 WoodsEdge Community Church. All rights reserved. This article may be reproduced for any non-commercial use.