“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything” –James 1:2-4
The last two days we looked at identifying with Jesus and the development of perseverance as reasons that we face trials. While there are several more we could study, today we will look at a third reason: to make us humble.
“To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’” -2 Corinthians 12:7-9
Just a few years ago, I was trying to get back in shape, largely for selfish reasons. We were going to have a charity basketball game and I really wanted to show up the competition. I knew my motives weren’t simply to help people, but to show off. I thought in my mind that because I was so wanting to show off for my glory, surely I’d turn an ankle or something so that God would get my attention. Well, I kept working out and instead of turning my ankle, I blew out a disc in my back and had to have surgery! Do I blame that on God? Well, I’m not so sure about that. But did God use it to get my attention? Yes. When I get a bit of numbness down my leg does God still use it to remind me how fragile I am and how dependent on him I need to be? Yes.
God doesn’t need superstar Christians who show off their gifts and talents. There are plenty of those in the world. The truth is that God will only bless our gifts when we have the right character to back up those talents. If it takes a trial to make us humble, may we be willing to endure so that we might be made holy.
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