by Jerry Senn
Listen to “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ” … where he said, “Consider it a great joy my brothers and sisters, whenever you experience various trials, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing” (James 1:1–4).
Trials of all types and on a variety of occasions test faith in order to make our spiritual journey with God “complete.” They should be considered part of the “good gifts” (v 17) God gives or allows as trials to make us whole. Untested faith prevents growth.
“There is an ancient Chinese philosophy which says, ‘To be dry and thirsty in a hot and dusty land—and to feel great drops of rain on my bare skin—ah, is this not happiness? To have an itch in the private parts of my body—and to finally escape from my friends and to a hiding place where I can scratch—ah, is that not happiness? Pain and pleasure are inextricably linked. The pleasure would not exist, or [at] least be recognized, if it were not for pain” (Philip Yancey, “Where Is God When it Hurts,” [Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1978], p 46).
“God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pain: it is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world” (C S Lewis).