Many

I can't tell you the number of times I've read these verses in James, but I can tell you there are two colors of highlighter on them in my Bible and those first few pages of his letter are pretty dog-eared.

As often as I know I've read them, I've always glossed over the word MANY.
Have you?

If you've memorized these verses does it go something like this in your head? --

"consider it pure joy when you face trials of any kind..."

No?
Well, maybe it's just me.

Some folks get hung up on the "consider it pure joy" part.
And that makes sense - it's HARD to find joy, much less dwell on it when you're in the middle of a mess.

We pretty much dwell on the mess, right? 

But think about that word here - MANY.
Don't we often encounter hard times on top of difficult circumstances in addition to out of control situations?
You know, piling on of the worst kind.

Trouble always seems multiplied and maybe it's because when we are in the middle of a mess, anything else that goes wrong seems all the worse because it's

"just one more thing."

Truth is, God is working in all of it.

We may hate these times, feel overwhelmed by them - but we have a God who is never daunted by our tough times. 

Ooh, that's good - I'll repeat it: 

We have a God who is NEVER daunted by our tough times.

He weeps when we weep. 

He hurts when we hurt. 

His heart breaks for His children. 

BUT

He knows that if we trust Him, 

rest in Him, 

and breathe deeply of the peaceful air He offers - 

we will be changed for the better when we come out on the other side of heartache.

Multiplied mess becomes multiplied JOY when we allow the trials of life 
to shape us and not break us.

"Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."(v. 4)

He is SO good, isn't He?

With a Courageous Heart, 

~~Robin