Trials Have a Purpose

Trials of Many Kinds
James 1:2-4 NIV


Trials are not easy. They are hard! Life gets really tough at times. Sometimes it gets overwhelming, in fact. Paul described it like this:


So, it isn’t as though, when we go through trials, that we always immediately jump for joy. Sometimes we must first grieve, as we call out to God in our times of difficulty. And, then, as we call on him in prayer, and he encourages and comforts our hearts, we can rejoice because we know God is allowing these troubles to take place for a purpose, and they are ultimately for our good, that we might learn to rely on God and not on ourselves.

Nothing happens to us by happenstance. Our God is absolutely sovereign over all that he has created. And, he will work all things for good for those who love him, who are following him, who are called according to his purpose.

Through our difficulties we grow in our walks of faith. We mature. We learn obedience, as Jesus learned obedience through the things which he suffered. And, we learn perseverance. I definitely know that! Sometimes I just want it to all be over, but it is through these hard times that we learn endurance, and that we are strengthened in our faith, and that God transforms us and he conforms us to his likeness.

Discipline is for our good that we may share in God’s holiness and that it may produce a harvest of righteousness in our lives. Because of the things we go through, we become the people of God that our Lord wants us to be, when we respond to our trials by submitting to his purposes for our lives. Through these trials God is molding us like clay, he is pruning us, he is changing our character, and he is making us more like him.

Wisdom from God
James 1:5-8 NIV


When we go through difficult times, we will need the wisdom of God to know how to respond to our trials and to our enemies, i.e. to our opposition. Certainly we know that scripture teaches us that we are to love our enemies, that we are to pray for them, do good to them, and that we are to bless and not curse them. But, we need wisdom to know how to implement those truths.

For example, love takes on many different forms. For instance, God loves us, but in that love he also speaks the truth in love to us, and he disciplines us for our good. So, love is not this mushy gushy emotion that just tries to make everyone feel good about themselves. And, love definitely does not lie to people just so that they will like us, and not be cross with us. Love is often tough love which does for others what is truly in their best interest, i.e. what is truly for their good; that which will benefit them and not cause them harm.

So many people get this idea that love and kindness are saying only nice things to people to make them happy, but that is not how God loves us, and it is not how we are to love others, either. Yes, we are to encourage one another, but even encouragement is not just a pat on the back to make others feel good about themselves, but it also entails inspiring, urging, inciting, and persuading people toward what is for their ultimate good.

Jesus and his New Testament apostles spoke the truth to people for their good, even when the truth hurt. They warned people against false teaching and false teachers, and they confronted them in their sins, and called for repentance. And, they refused to bow to the opinions of men or to conform to the ways of this sinful world and the culture around them, and they resisted authority which demanded that they disobey God.

So, this is why we must pray for wisdom to know how to respond, not only to our circumstances, but to our persecutors, for each situation may call for a unique response specific only to that particular circumstance or people.

But, when we pray for wisdom, then we must not doubt God’s counsel to us, i.e. we must not second-guess God. If we want to know what God wants us to do, then we must be willing to do what he says. Yet, we may need clarification of what he is saying, especially since we can’t hear him audibly, and we may want to make certain it is his voice speaking to us, and not some other voice we may be hearing in our heads.

But, we shouldn’t pray for wisdom from above if we are not willing to do what God shows us. For then we are double-minded and unstable, and we will not receive the wisdom we so desire from the Lord.

Persevering Under Trial
James 1:12 NIV


Not only are there eternal rewards for having stood the test under trial, but there are also many benefits to be gained while we still live here on the face of this earth.

For me, I can truly say that all that I have been through has drawn me close to my Lord. And, even though I have days when I wish it would all just go away, I know that I have benefited greatly from all that God has taken me through. I know that, because of all my trials, I am much more serious about the Word of God and my commitment to my Lord, and about my service to him, too. Through all that I went through, and am still going through, God prepared me and is continuing to equip me for his service.

Through all that God has allowed in my life, he has helped me to see life through his eyes, from his perspective. I can feel what he feels, and see what he sees, though not everything. Yet, through the things I have experienced God has given me his passion for his church and for his truth. Thus, when I write, I can write from my own heart and experiences what I know is in God’s heart, and I am able to express what God feels with passion, because I truly feel it, because I have lived it. So, my trials have, thus, worked good in my life for God’s purposes for my life, so this is good.

So, when you are going through life’s trials, know that God has a purpose for it all, and that he has something he wants to teach you, and for you to experience, because he wants to use it in your life in some way for your good and for the good of others whose lives you touch. So, thank the Lord that he has given you these trials for your good, and praise him.

No Less
An Original Work / March 19, 2012

I can do no less than praise You,
Lord, for all You’ve done for me.
You died for my sins to save me,
So I would be set free.
I adore You! Lord, I praise You!
Jesus, Savior, King of kings!
You provided my redemption.
Your grace has pardoned me.

I can do no less than serve You.
Lord, Your witness I would be,
Telling others of Your love,
And why You died on that tree.
Tell of how You gave of Your life,
So from sin we’d be set free,
So we could worship You forever,
And live eternally.

I can do no less than love You,
Lord, for You have first loved me.
You gave of Your life so willing,
Because You cared for me.
Turn from my sin! Obey freely!
Live for You each passing day.
Read Your word, and follow Your lead,
Lord, as I humbly pray.


Friday, March 23, 2018, 6:00 a.m. – Thank you, Jesus, for these words of encouragement today. Bring them home to our hearts, I pray in Jesus’ name.

drjean said:

I believe that God is sovereign yet He does not cause the negatives in our lives, indeed, Scripture tells us He wants only good for us, and is Love Himself. But you are surely correct in that He allows, uses and fixes each trial we go through. I know for myself, and I believe it's what I always see in other's trials, that until I "get it", until I acquiesce to God and His wisdom and quit striving to fix a situation, then once that trial is over I will receive another just like it..God allows one after the other UNTIL I give it to Him and wait for His deliverance and mighty power...as I praise Him and trust Him in joy---no matter what. Unfortunately, sometimes the devil tricks me into thinking it's something I can fix and it might take a day or two for me to then "get it" --again.

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Thank you for sharing that with me. I understand what you are saying here. But, God does cause some of these trials, too, like he did with Job. And, Job recognized that what he was going through came from the hand of God, too. And, there are many other scriptures which speak of God causing trials and tribulations, too, but for his purposes, and for the recipients ultimate good.

For, you see, trials and tribulations are good for us, so whether God allows them or causes them, in his sovereign will for our lives, our trials work good in our lives for they help us to mature, to rely on God and not on ourselves, to prune and purify us, to make us more like Jesus, to draw us closer to our Lord, to make us holy, and to teach us obedience, perseverance, patience and endurance, etc.

Heart2Soul said:

A
A big AMEN on this one.....I have had more trials and tribulations than I care to admit and not too long ago I hit a bottom in my life that i felt there was no way to get up again.....i hit the floor, fell to my knees and cried out I SURRENDER! I can't fix me anymore........only you can....Jesus I asked you to be my savior but I never let you be my Lord.....here is the deed to my life....you are now the owner of it and do with me what you will...NOT my will...but Thy wlll be done.....
The very next day things started happening supernaturally.....

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That is an awesome testimony! And, that is exactly where we need to be, on our knees, in full surrender to him, making him truly Lord (owner-master) of our lives and us taking our hands off and letting him have full reign. Thank you for sharing those encouraging words.

drjean said:

I believe with Job it was God allowing and not causing. If we read closely, we see that Job lived in fear---his daily sacrifices for his sons "in case they".... that's not the best attitude, imo.

Job blamed God for all the tragedies, not realizing it was satan the whole time (remember Satan went before God Almighty and had to ask, yet was still limited to not killing Job too). God does eventually rebuff Job when he is ready to listen.

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Actually, it was God who brought up Job to Satan, and asked him if he had considered his servant Job. God described Job as completely righteous at the beginning and at the end. Where Job failed, and needless to say few of us could have undergone what he did and not failed, is that he questioned God's justice. He questioned God's sovereignty over his life, so Job gave in to pride when things got really bad, which they did. Job didn't go through all that because he was sinning against God, which is what his friends tried to prove. And, as God so said at the end, the friends were wrong.

But, Job is not the only biblical example of God causing bad things to happen. God used bad people as his divine instruments of judgment against his rebellious people on many occasions, and God made it perfectly clear that he was the one doing it. Just like at the end of time, God uses the beast as his divine instrument against the nations and he also uses the beast against his people in order to purify them and to make them ready for the wedding feast. God is completely sovereign over all he has made and all powers are under his control, so he causes or he allows bad things to happen for his purposes in people's lives.