January was an intense month, not only because of the precious and enjoyable events that the Lord brought to us, but also because of the challenges and afflictions that I have undergone. During an entire week, I was suffering from such intense back pain that it left me literally immobile. The pain was very intense, to the point that any move I made provoked sharp muscle contractions. But in the midst of the physical suffering, I was comforted by the words from James 1:2-3. They brought joy to my soul.
These words, inspired by the Holy Spirit, were very fitting for the affliction that I was going through. The natural tendency in the midst of adversity and trials is to be tempted to pity ourselves and become consumed with how bad we are suffering. It is also our temptation to doubt the good purposes of God that lie behind our suffering. But the commandment here is to “consider it all joy”. Rather than pity ourselves, we are commanded to abound in gladness, to have “all joy,” to possess nothing but “joy,” to consider that whatever we are going through is a cause for “joy,” and in fact, “all joy.”
Any such claim might sound like masochism in the eyes of the world, but in realty every trial imaginable for the believer “works together for good to those who love God” (Romans 8:28). In the divine strategy these things work for the benefit of His children. God allows the believer to pass through afflictions and trials with the purpose of perfecting his faith and purifying his heart. James tells us that the testing of our faith produces patience, or persevering strength in the midst of affliction. And that patience produces proven character. It perfects us and makes us mature in our faith.
When we undergo trials and adversity, when we are tried by the Lord, in whatever way it might be, the Lord Himself is bringing us to a greater and more intimate knowledge of Him, and we are sharpened and developed in all the attributes of the Christian character. With that in mind, we are able to be joyful in affliction, not necessarily because the suffering is good in itself, because really nobody could claim that the pain of suffering is a marvelous thing; but it is a joy because our faith is strengthened and the quality of our character is revealed.
Oh, how much we have to learn about God and about ourselves through trials! But at the same time, how beneficial is the trial because of the hope that it produces in us, and hope does not disappoint because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts by the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5). As trials and afflictions grow, so also does our experience of the infinite love of our God and Father.
