IMO: You Deserve to Be Happy - Monday
James 1:2-3
Consider 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. (NIV)
The verse above says to consider it “pure joy” whenever you face trials. Call me a Negative Nancy, but my first reaction to hard times isn’t usually joy.
I was on an airplane recently with some pretty bad turbulence. And by pretty bad, I mean there was someone throwing up behind me, someone throwing up in front of me, and it was taking everything in me not to lose my lunch as well. The plane circled the Lexington airport multiple times going up and down trying to avoid heavy winds. Finally, after what felt like forever, we descended to the ground and landed… and then we all cheered!
Turbulence isn’t fun. We don’t look forward to turbulence on plane rides or “turbulence” in our lives. But you know what I heard recently? Planes almost never crash due to turbulence. It’s uncomfortable, you could get a little bumped or bruised, but the plane is most likely not going down. This was comforting to me.
God doesn’t promise us that life will be easy. In fact, He assures us that it won’t be. We think we should be entitled to a life that is easy or painless. We think a good God would love us so much to give us that. But what if He loves us so much to not give us that? God sees an entirely different perspective than we do, and He can see how trials in our life can grow us. What’s best for us might not be the easiest path, even if that’s the path that we see as the most comfortable.
Monday’s Reflection
Spend some time today reflecting on some trials you’ve gone through in the past, and ask God to reveal any good things that came from those difficult situations. Pray that God would help you see His presence through your current circumstances and trust that He is still in control.
