GROWING THROUGH ADVERSITY - Pt 2

James 1: 1-12 “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting. My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways. Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted: But the rich, in that he is made low: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away. For the sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat, but it withereth the grass, and the flower thereof falleth and the grace of the fashion of it perisheth so also shall the rich man fade away in his ways. Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.”

There are many stories of men and women who had many, many adversities In their lives but overcame them. One such story is about a man who dropped out of elementary school and was home educated. Later in life he ran a country store but was not able to be successful in that venture. In fact, he had to work 19 years just to pay all the debt he accrued in that venture. He later had a law firm but his partner ran off and left him with more debts. He was married, but his marriage failed. His wife came down with mental illness and paranoia. He had a son who was physically weak and died at an early age. He ran for political office four times; twice for the house and twice for the senate, and lost his races all four times. Ultimately, he held office but was despised by half the country. He was derided by the news media on a daily basis. When he made speeches, they were considered to be very hum-drum. Even the speech that was considered as classic was met with indifference. This was man was none other than Abraham Lincoln.

I don’t know if Lincoln was a believer or not; some say that he was. But there was something within him that drove him to overcome adversity.

As a believer, how can we face adversity and be successful. That’s what we are dealing with in these series of CHALLENGING CONCEPTS.

I. THE REALITY OF ADVERSITY – verse 2 “My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;”

If you’re still kicking, you’re going to have problems. One of my favorite verses is Job 5:7 “Yet man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward.”

Adversity is inevitable. If you’ll notice verse 2 again you will notice that James did not say “if you fall into divers temptations.” He said “when.” You will have adversity. You say, “But what if I don’t?” Check your pulse and look at the obituary.

The Apostle Peter wrote in I Peter 4:12 “Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:” Peter is saying, “ Don’t be taken back by your adversity because they are coming.”

James is actually giving the believer the proper environment for facing adversity. In these first few verses of this chapter James is giving us some of the most encouraging and practical words of the entire Word of God for how to handle problems and hardships. When you consider the words of James and the challenge of Peter in the verse we just noted, adversity should not be looked at as a foe, but a friend. That’s not the viewpoint of society and most of us as believers, but it’s the attitude God wants us to have if we are interested in growing through anything God allows to come in our life.

One of the things we need to remember is that adversities are not predictable. James uses the word “fall.” This word literally means to fall into unexpectedly. This word was also used in relationship to the Good Samaritan who “fell among thieves.” He didn’t plan to be high jacked. He didn’t see it coming.

In my own experience, which has been light contrasted with others, I never seem to anticipate the problems which came my way. People don’t anticipate getting diabetes, or failing in business.

Adversities come in all shapes and sizes. Notice verse 2 again, “My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;” The word “divers” means “various in character.” Someone has said the word also means “multi-colored” and is the same word used in the Old Testament to describe Joseph’s coat of many colors. I conclude that the Word of God is saying that adversities come in different shades and varieties. Some may be light while others are hard. Some may last for a short amount of time and other might plague a person for a life-time.

How can we handle these adversities? What does the Word of God say to encourage us during these times?

We read what the Psalmist wrote in Psalm 55:22 “Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.”

The Apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 4:6-7 “Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”

God wants to and will sustain the child of God as they go through adversity.

In next week’s CHALLENGING CONCEPTS we will explore THE REASONS FOR ADVERSITY.

That’s my view; how about you?