This morning I am reflecting on some verses from James' letter. He wrote it to the Twelve Tribes, and thus was primarily writing to the Jewish believers of His day, and as such assumes his readers have some Jewish understanding. The verses I am reading are quite straight-forward and don't really require much historical perspective. Here are the verses - James 1:2-8 NIV:
[2] "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, [3] because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. [4] Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. [5] If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. [6] But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. [7] That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. [8] Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do."
There are several translations to the word in verse 2 that has been translated trials, (the majority of the times it is translated temptations) but the testing spoken of in verse 3 gives us the context to rightly translate this trials to mean testing or proving, as in taking a test or a pop-quiz to show what you know and what you don't.
Isn't it interesting that regular testing is part of our faith walk? I would have preferred to have left all my testing behind when I finished school, but the Lord is about growing us and maturing us, and part of that process is the testing and proving we encounter daily. James writes that these trials are diverse (many kinds) and the word he uses could be translated various colors. It is not like each of us will be given the standardized test, and we will will all receive it the same day. We are all uniquely in relationship with the Lord, and He deals with each of us one on one. I love that we each get personalized tutoring by our teacher - Holy Spirit (John 14:26)- and that He is about helping us to mature and be complete, not lacking anything (verse 4 above).
Going back to verse three, the testing and proving of our faith is supposed to produce perseverance. This is the point, we need to learn to hold on, to maintain our position, to stand strong. Muscles are only built stronger by much work against some resistance. In the same way, apparently our faith requires testing which produces perseverance, which makes us stronger in our faith, even mature. It seems that most of the time, my first thought when I encounter a trial is to wonder if I am being punished. However, if I look at the purpose of testing described above, then I should realize that I have an opportunity to prove or strengthen my faith, and that will result in maturity. What a difference an internal change of mind-set could have!
I remember when I was in school, there were certain classes that I excelled in, and I was never worried if the teacher said we were going to have a pop-quiz because I knew I would do fine. There were certain teachers that I knew I clicked with, teachers who seemed to connect with me and help me learn better than others. That is what we have in the Holy Spirit, someone who knows us better than anyone else in the world. He knows exactly what we need to learn, and how we will best learn it. He isn't interested in rote learning or memorization, He wants us to really learn to fully assimilate those things He is teaching us.
I love the fact that James then continues on and says if we lack wisdom (understanding about why and what we learning) that we should ask and God will provide. Going back to my teacher analogy, this is like us asking the teacher for help understanding something. I remember as a child I would be afraid to ask the teacher to re-explain something. I am not sure why I was afraid, but I rarely asked for help. I would most likely wait for later when I could ask my mom or dad, who I knew loved me and would be willing to help me. James notes that God will give us wisdom generously, without finding fault in us, or in our ability to learn, etc. He wants us to succeed because He has plans and purposes for us, and our maturity is one of those things that helps us to bear more fruit, to accomplish more. The key we need to remember is that if we ask, He will answer, but we need to be listening so as not to miss His answer! He will give us the wisdom we need, and He will give generously. He wants us to succeed!
Finally when we ask, we must believe or have faith that He will answer. That is such a simple concept, if we ask we should believe that He will answer! He will not ignore us, or treat us with contempt. He won't belittle, or abandon, rather He will answer. His answer will be what we need. We don't need to ask for a second opinion, or go to another teacher, rather we should be listening and applying what He tells us. One of the reasons I pray and journal regularly, is to help me listen and apply what He shows me. He is a great teacher, and a great Father who wants us to succeed!
So today I am encouraged to change my mindset about the trials, tests and pop-quizzes that come my way. I choose to believe that God is helping me to grow in maturity, in perseverance and ultimately wants me to bear much fruit! I know that He loves me and that He is willing to help me in all things!
Thank You Lord!
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