Trials and Troubles

In everyone's life there will come times when we have trials. These trials can come in the form of financial troubles, relationship problems, or sickness. Over the past 6 months my family has experienced a trial the likes of my family has never experienced. In January, my father had a stroke. Anyone out there who have had family members that have had a stroke or have been a care giver for a stroke survivor, you will know how stressful it can be. My mother and brother are my father's main caregivers, they are there day in and day out, I greatly admire both of them. My brother, I have a lot of respect for, he is a young 22 years old, and has taken on the responsibility that some men much older than him would not.


James 1:2-4 says My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.


This one verse tells us that although sometimes we may ask, why would God ever put me through this? We can rest in the fact that God has a purpose for everything that occurs in our lives. Not only that, but our faith can be built out of it. Recently at church there was a discussion about troubled times in our lives. God will allow you to experience trials in order to use your experience in that you receive while going through the troubled time to allow you to do a wonderful work for him later. If you read this scripture again, you will see the phrase: But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. This is an amazing thought, in that, God is telling us here that the trials that we experience will actually build us into a more perfect person, and be lacking nothing in our lives. Think about that, some of the hardest times in our lives can make us into people who lack nothing.... an absolutely amazing thought.


Many times we all can become very stressed and sometimes depressed when we experience troubled times in our lives. One thing that I have learned is that when things are wonderful in your life and you haven't got a care in the world, that it's easy to pray and praise God. However, when those difficult times come to your life it gets much more difficult to trust God, to pray and study his word. During those difficult times we have an amazing opportunity to grow our relationship with God.


My challenge to myself and all of you is the next time you begin experiencing a trial in your life to use that time in your life to grow closer with God, get in his word and absorb everything he wants you to learn, and praise, yes praise him for allowing you to experience this and know that his plan is perfect, and that God has a perfect purpose for allowing you to experience whatever it is that is occurring in your life.