James 1:2-3
By: Kara WilliamsConsider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. I’m not sure about you, but when I face trials, it is not my natural tendency to consider them joy and rejoice in them. I want to wallow in self-pity and think that God has forgotten me. Thankfully, this is not the case. The Greek word for trials here is the word “trouble.” It is something that breaks the pattern of peace, comfort, joy, and happiness in someone’s life. The verb form of this word means “to put someone or something to the test,” with the purpose of discovering that person’s nature or that thing’s quality. God brings such tests to prove- and increase- the strength and quality of one’s faith and to demonstrate its validity.2