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James 1:2-4
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 not what we expect James to say. We expect him to say something like this:
Count it all joy when God shows up in your life in miraculous ways.
Count it all joy when life is clicking along just how you hoped it would.
Count it all joy when heaven answers your prayers with a resounding ‘yes’.
Certainly, these are obvious occasions for joy, but James offers another reason: Count it all joy when you meet trials. The NET says it this way, “Consider it nothing but joy when you fall into all sorts of trials” (James 1:2).
Although we are left reeling from the bluntness of his opening sentence, his original audience would have immediately noticed the play on words. The Greek word for greetings (chairō) is similar to the Greek word for joy (chara). James stitches the two thoughts together seamlessly using alliteration. His readers would have heard the connection, and the leap from his simple hello to his call to view trials from a heavenly perspective wouldn’t have seemed as enormous.
Trials are inevitable. They are inescapable. In fact, life on this earth tends to serve up one trial after another, and sometimes we haven’t quite gotten over the aftermath of one before being faced with another. I can testify to this. In 2014 my mom died suddenly of a rare complication from a kidney stone. In 2015 I was diagnosed with cancer and endured the treatment that followed. In 2016 a trusted ministry family abruptly left their post at the church at which I was working. One tidal wave after another left me stunned and slightly disoriented. James assures us we will meet trials of all shapes and sizes—and when we do, we are to rejoice.
Before we answer the burning question about how on the ever-lovin’ earth we can rejoice when smack-dab in the middle of a difficulty, let’s look at the Greek word for ‘meet.’ Peripiptō means ‘to fall into as to be encompassed.’ We can be walking along in life, minding our own business, and in one fateful step we can fall headlong into a trial. This happens with a phone call in the middle of the night, unexpected news of the company downsizing, or a positive test result and the flurry of medical procedures that follow. Many times, we never saw it coming. In a case like this, the trial can be so all-consuming, that our lives are immediately engulfed in a new unwanted reality.
The Reason for Rejoicing
Consider it an occasion for great joy when you fall into all kinds of trials. How, James? How can we possibly rejoice when life suddenly turns upside-down? James doesn’t leave us wondering as we dangle from our ankles.
To be perfectly clear, the kind of joy James expects us to have in the middle of difficulty is not a throw-a-party kind of joy, but a grateful-for-the-opportunity-to learn-and-grow kind of joy. James isn’t calling for balloons and streamers, but a calm assurance of God’s goodness, even amidst affliction.
Just hours after my mom passed away, in the sleep-deprived initial shock of grief, I posted about her death on social media. In that post I declared what I knew to be true—the only anchor I had in the storm at that moment: God is sovereign, and He is good. In a way I couldn’t have articulated at the time, I needed the world to know my solid conviction. When we believe that God is sovereign and good, we believe that everything that comes into our lives has been either ordained by Him or allowed by Him. Therefore, it stands to reason, each trial must have some divine purpose. And while we may never know the specific purposes of each difficulty, we do know the general purpose.
Trials reveal what kind of faith we have. Our response to trials reveals our heart condition and uncovers the foundation on which we’ve built our lives. It’s important to note that faith is tested through trials, not produced by trials. The moment you get the dreaded phone call is not the time to figure out what you believe, because the worst time to repair a foundation is in the middle of a storm.
Trials produce steadfastness. Steadfastness is the quality that helps you finish that Couch to 5K running goal you are working towards. It is the determination that enables you to stand strong in the face of opposition. When trials are met with faith, they produce an active endurance in the life of a believer. Steadfastness is “the characteristic of a person who is not swerved from his deliberate purpose and his loyalty to faith by even the greatest trials and suffering.” A steadfast woman has her eyes set on the goal, her hands busy doing kingdom work, her heart trusting fully in Her Saviour, and she is not swayed by anyone or anything.
Trials are an invitation. We can know with assurance that God always wants us to draw nearer to Him in difficult circumstances. He’s calling us to a greater level of faith in Him, a deeper dependence on His character, and a higher perspective of our situation in light of eternity. If we value comfort more than character, then trials will upset us. But when we view trials through the eyes of faith from the standpoint of what God is doing in and through us, our joy remains undisturbed. In his commentary on James, Dan Doriani says this, “We must see the world as a place of constant testing. Peace is rare, almost abnormal, and trials are common. Rather than blaming God for this, we should regard it as a joy, because trials produce maturity, especially if we seek God’s wisdom in them.” The truth is we may never understand all God’s purposes in what He allows, but when we trust the character of our Heavenly Father, we can rest.
Ultimate Steadfastness
When our faith is tested through trials, our steadfastness grows. The more trials we walk through, the more steadfastness has an opportunity to increase. And when steadfastness has its full effect, we will be perfect and complete, lacking nothing, James tells us. This isn’t sinless perfection, but a maturity that comes with years of steadily walking with Jesus. This is why I jump at the chance to sit across from a gray-haired woman, listen to her stories and allow her steadfast trust in God rub off on me. Typically, she’s been through some things and has ample wisdom to share. I want to be her one day.
I imagine you do too. So, let’s submit to James’ instruction and turn trials into triumph, knowing God is doing a good work in us—all for His glory.
A Living Faith: The Story of James
I’m a practical girl. Talk to me in theory and ideals and I’ll respond with a blank stare, but give me a list of things to do and I’m on it! That’s why I resonate so much with the letter James wrote in Scripture. It is filled with imperatives that could fill our to-do lists from not until Jesus comes back. This tiny letter, penned by the half-brother of Jesus, is full of instruction and encouragement and teaches us what living faith looks like in the lives of authentic Christ-followers. James says faith without works is not really faith at all. This is a 6-week Bible study. Let's discover together how to cultivate a living faith.
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