Wisdom for the Trials of Life
Read | James 1:5-8
At first glance, today’s passage on wisdom doesn’t seem related to the subject of trials, but James is actually continuing His thoughts from the previous three verses. We need wisdom to know how to respond to suffering. This means we should see trials from God’s viewpoint and understand His purposes in allowing them in our lives.
If you want to profit from struggles, be sustained in them, and come through with joy and victory, you must understand the following truths:
1. God’s in full control of the timing and intensity of your trial, and He won’t let it go beyond the boundaries He has set.
2. He has a specific purpose for your suffering, which you may not understand until it is over.
3. This trial will be profitable if you submit to God and trust Him through it.
4. A trying situation is a chance for faith to prove genuine and grow stronger.
5. When you endure extreme pressure with unexplainable peace and joy, the Lord will demonstrate His sustaining power to a watching world.
6. The Father will use your difficulties to produce Christ-like character.
7. God will walk with you through trials.
8. The Holy Spirit will enable you to survive this and to come out a conqueror.
If you believe these principles, they will shape how you respond to difficulties in your life. This perspective eliminates the negative reactions normally elicited by trials and makes supernatural responses possible. Instead of feeling miserable and hopeless, you’ll experience amazing peace and joy.
