Focus

Prepare yourself to discern what is and what is not of God today. Still yourself so you can hear how God is calling you.

Read

James 1:2-11 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

My brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of any kind, consider it nothing but joy, 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 in nothing.

If any of you is lacking in wisdom, ask God, who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly, and it will be given you. But ask in faith, never doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind; for the doubter, being double-minded and unstable in every way, must not expect to receive anything from the Lord.

Let the believer who is lowly boast in being raised up,  and the rich in being brought low, because the rich will disappear like a flower in the field.  For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the field; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. It is the same way with the rich; in the midst of a busy life, they will wither away.

Reflect

Trials and tribulations. Our world seems to be full of them, in our workplace, family, neighbors, church family, or ourselves. The hardest battle is the internal one that we fight daily. At our weakest time seems to be when those outside forces take their toil. When circumstances try to “rattle our cage”, take the time to step back internally and say okay this is to try my faith either to make me better or bitter. These trials are not supposed to make us bitter because we have a door to open in Christ.

God has his hand open full of wisdom to give us, so we can handle these situations. All we have to do is ask. If we allow the trials to strengthen our faith, it produces patience and perseverance which makes us better. Hebrews 12 says we have a cloud of witnesses as we run our race in life. We also have a host of witnesses on this earth who observe how we handle these trials. Watching how it strengthens our faith and gives us “peace of God which passeth all understanding”. This will encourage those witnesses that they too can persevere.

Pray

Holy Father, Creator and author of my salvation, I ask that you give me wisdom. In order that I may how to respond to people who are trouble, frustrated, angry, and need a word to give them a different perspective. We are nothing without you and we praise you for your Word, for your Son, and for your work in us. Help me to be a better witness to others, so they will be drawn to you.

Go with God!