“Dear brothers and sisters, whenever trouble comes your way, let it be an opportunity for joy.” – James 1:2
Someone should have pulled James aside and clued him into the fact that it would be much easier to have joy if there was a lack of trouble as opposed to an abundance or even existence of trouble. However, since scripture is scripture and I believe wholeheartedly in the authority of the Bible I would like to take a few moments to share some thoughts about this odd verse that seems kind of like an oxymoron.
Let me explain that James is not hoping trouble comes your way; he is simply recognizing that trouble exists in the world and more than likely at some point you will encounter it. He then gives us a suggestion that when the inevitable trouble crosses our path we should look at it as a source of joy. I want to lift up two thoughts pertaining to this verse. Understandably there are many more possible thoughts than two, but I humbly offer these two as things that God put on my heart.
First, let’s look at trouble from a Christian perspective. I apologize on behalf of all pastors if at any time you were led to believe that once you became a Christian (i.e. once you accepted Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior) that your life would never encounter difficulties. In fact, no where in the Bible (and trust me I’ve looked) does it say being a Christian will be easy. The truth is when we are being the Christians God calls us to be trouble is exactly what we will have. Why? The reason is because we are flying on Satan’s radar. When we follow closely to the will of God we get picked up on Satan’s radar and he begins to cause trouble in our lives. That’s good; it’s good when Satan has to try to knock us off our faith because our faith has become a force the devil feels must be dealt with. On the other hand, we should really be concerned as Christians if we are having no trouble whatsoever, this might indicate that we are not flying on Satan’s radar and therefore not following closely to the will of God. I believe that being a true Christian and encountering trouble are inseparable from one another. And so encountering trouble could be an affirmation of our faith, which in turn should bring us joy.
Secondly, let’s look at the opportunity trouble provides for us as Christians. I see the troubles of life as opportunities to not just talk the Christian talk, but actually walk the Christian walk. In other words…it’s game time. When there is no trouble in your life then being a Christian is easy, when trouble comes and our faith gets tested things get a little more difficult. Trouble doesn’t guarantee joy for a Christian; it simply provides a chance for that Christian to put his/her faith into action and grow closer to God. Therefore, whether or not you receive joy at the face of trouble is completely up to you. In my life, and believe me it isn’t every time, I try to embrace the troubles in life and standing firmly on my Christian foundation experience joy because I know that is exactly what God wants from me and for me. And so troubles provide us with a chance to grow our faith which should cause us to experience joy.
To not take advantage of this opportunity for joy simply makes you feel worse and further empowers Satan to control you…neither of which seem all that great to me. As always I welcome your questions and comments on this subject, please let me know what you think.
Heavenly Father, I give you honor and glory for the many blessings you’ve given us. I thank you for the sacrifice you made of your Son on the cross so that our sins could be forgiven and we would have a chance at eternal life. Help us experience joy in the midst of trouble so that we can continually grow closer to you. Give us the mind and strength to embrace our Christian faith and to fly smack dab in the middle of Satan’s radar. These things we ask in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
