How to Develop Endurance in Trials

Posted on Apr 26, 2018 Topic : Inspirational/Devotional, Men's Christian Living
Posted by : Dr. Tony Evans

I clearly remember watching TV when I was a young boy growing up in Baltimore. From time to time the normal programming would be interrupted by a test of the emergency broadcasting system. Then I would hear a loud, annoying noise for 30 or 60 seconds. I used to hate those tests because they always seemed to come at the worst time, just when you didn't want the show to be interrupted. And since there was never any advance warning that the test was coming, there wasn't any way you could avoid it. The station just broke in and did its test.

The setbacks of life are like that. They often come with no warning, just the announcement: “This is a test.” There's often nothing to warn you that the doctor is coming back with a bad report or that your company is downsizing. Life's setbacks just show up at the most inopportune times.

We see throughout Scripture that trials are an inevitable reality in life, and we read imperatives like this: “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials” (James 1:2). Notice the Bible does not say if you encounter trials, but when. Trials are inescapable. Job said, “Man is born for trouble, as sparks fly upward” (5:7). The only way to avoid trouble is to exit life. Jesus said, “In the world you have tribulation” (John 16:33). You can count on it.

Trials are difficulties we inevitably run into as part of life, not necessarily the problems we create for ourselves. Those kinds of problems are called sin. So if you are going through a tough time right now, don't be surprised. If you have just exited a trial, don't be shocked when the next one arrives. Trials come with living in an imperfect world.

Trials come in a multitude of colors, shapes, and sizes. So, since we can't avoid them, what should we do with them? How can we turn a setback into a comeback? The Bible gives us three instructions on how to respond to trials:

1. Display Some Joy (James 1:2): When trials come, instead of getting mad, get glad because you know God is up to something good in your life. This command does not mean you have to hide the pain of a trial or pretend the pain feels good. The Bible does not say we need to feel joyful during the trial, but to consider that trial all joy.

2. Ask for Wisdom (James 1:5): God urges us to ask for His help during trials. James tells us to ask God, and He will freely and generously give us His wisdom (James 1:5). The Bible promises a generous supply of God's wisdom in answer to your prayer so you will know how to navigate successfully through the trial until you have reached its intended goal.

3. Give God Praise (James 1:9-11): James’s third piece of sound how-to advice is to give God praise. We are to praise God no matter what our situation. Give glory to God. He will lift you to a high position at the right time, and He will humble you when you need humbling. Give Him praise either way because He knows exactly what you need. God lets us come into conflict with earthly things so we might see eternal things more clearly. And He will keep the trial there until we pass the test.

God wants you to pass the test—to overcome the trial—not only so He can give you the reward but also so you will learn to love Him more, with Christlike passion and devotion. He puts you in trials to draw you close, to teach you to cling to Him, to grow you into spiritual adulthood, and to bring you along in your journey toward your comeback. Let Him finish His work in you.