Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. ~James 1:2–4 (NIV)
Letting perseverance finish its work means to “stick it out” or “to hang in there”. We are told by the Lord that is the path to being mature. Have you ever done something consistently until you saw a change in your life? Have you ever endured until a situation changed without intervening while you trusted the Lord to fulfill His promise to you? That isn’t easy work. No wonder we end up mature on the back end! Keeping our peace and keeping our mouth closed in difficult situations tends to go against every fiber of our being. Even if we do have a little training in it there are always going to be opportunities for the enemy to come against our emotions and try to get us to see things in the light of his word verses the word of God. The truth is that trials have a purpose and if we do continue with God and commit to His way, they will mature us and eventually bring us to a place where we lack no good thing. Many people believe when they become Christians that everything is going to be smooth sailing from there on out, but that just isn’t the case. We all have trials, young and old, rich and poor alike. In Psalm 73:2-3 we read “But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.” (NIV) Asaph is credited to be the author of Psalm 73 and he was also known to be King David's music director. He was said to hold that same position during King Solomon’s rule. Asaph watched King Solomon go from the “wisest man who ever lived” to a man who let position and prosperity cause him to sin against the Lord who gave it all to him.
Envy can be a temptation and trial for all of us. Who hasn’t asked God why? Why does the road seem easy for those who don't seem to care about living for God while those who do so often seem to struggle? Asaph was no different than the rest of us in that manner, but in the midst of his turmoil of heart, Asaph sought God’s wisdom on the matter. That is usually where we drop the ball. If we let envy fester instead of seeking God to show us His perspective, it turns to bitterness. Asaph learned something amazing when he recognized his sin of not trusting in the goodness of God. In verse 21 we read “When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you.” (NIV) Asaph acknowledged his envy and discontentment with the providence of God as sin in his heart and at that point he began to look up instead of looking around. In Psalm 73:23-26 he proclaims “Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” (NIV) Let God be your portion and the strength of your heart today. Get your eyes off what others have or are doing and trust Him to be everything you need. Believe in God's promises even if you don’t understand His purposes!
Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. ~Psalm 73:1 (NIV)
What “why” are you asking God about today? Who are you looking at that seems to have the “easy road”?
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