“You will be strong in character and ready for anything.” James 1:4 NLT
“Absolute trust is not learned in shallow living, but is learned in the severest of trials.”
My thoughts today are that “life happens.”
Life comes at you pretty fast, rarely with adequate warning to prepare. As a young teen, I was a Boy Scout, and every Scout remembers the motto, “Be prepared.” That was good instruction for young boys and remains wise counsel for those of any age, any gender. However, the reality is you won’t always be ready for what comes your way, unless you prepare. Life provides you with experience; experience prepares you for life. Life is full of surprises, not all of them good. But when you respond wisely, any experience can build something good in you that you could otherwise lack.
James wrote, “You will be strong in character and ready for anything.” James 1:4 NLT. Ready for anything; now that sounds great. But “anything” covers a wide variety of life experiences, doesn’t it? Life happens whether you are ready or not! Life happens but not by happenstance. How can you be ready for the unforeseen? Well, the Bible also tells you what prepares you for the unexpected; “Whenever trouble comes your way, let it be an opportunity for joy. For when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything.” James 1:2-4 NLT.
Trouble, though unwelcome, can bring moral and emotional strength, and resilience of character, that may come no other way. Endurance in troubling times teaches you things about yourself you may not have realized before. You can learn that you are stronger and tougher than you thought. You might also discover vulnerabilities in your beliefs or faith that need to be addressed and reinforced. Trouble teaches the value of friendship; none of us are as strong alone as we are together.
Mostly, you learn so much more about God – His character, His nature, His wisdom, His love, His faithfulness, His truth, and His power. “Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I obey Your word. You are good, and what You do is good; teach me Your decrees . . it was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn Your (commands).” Psalm 119:68/71 NIV. You know you have met God face to face when you can see that any trouble that brings you to Him is a blessing in disguise.
Read about Paul’s experience. “. . burdened beyond measure, above strength, despaired even of life . . that we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead, who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver us, in Whom we trust He will still deliver us.” Read 2 Corinthians 1:3-11 NKJV. Absolute trust is not learned in shallow living; it is learned in the severest of trials. “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.” Ephesians 6:10 NKJV.
Yes, life will teach you the accurate, practical truth of today’s verse, “When your endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything.” James 1:4 NLT. Until you have gone through the circumstance, you won’t know the way through, but God does. Knowing and trusting Him personally is the way that you prepare for life – strong and ready for anything.
My prayer for you today is that you grow stronger in God’s strength.