A prayer for trials of various kinds
In trials of various kinds, the Lord is always working to keep the same promise.
“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds…” (James 1:2). I’ve been thinking about James’ “various kinds” lately. He doesn’t give an itemized list of trials, nor does he attempt to cover all the possibilities. His broad, sweeping “various kinds” could have one of two effects. On one hand, I could read that phrase and imagine that the kind of trial I’m facing is lost in the crowd, simply one of many. But on the other hand, I could find my particular trial included among the many and varied kinds of trials, not exempt or overlooked.
We all encounter a variety of trials. If I consider the little circle of my loved ones, my friends, and my church family, the varied trials appear near-infinite. Even when the broad strokes are similar (sickness, loss, and ordinary struggles), there is variety and particularity in every story, every grief, every burden, and every calling. With all the variety, though, James unifies every trial under one heading, and he makes one claim, one promise, that covers them all: “for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness” (James 1:3).
For those who are in Christ, whatever the variety of your current trial or testing, this is true: it produces steadfastness.
It’s true in the grief of losing a loved one.
It’s true in the devastation of a cancer diagnosis.
It’s true in the dark clouds that don’t lift.
It’s true in the chronic pain that doesn’t relent.
It’s true in the struggle to dig out of deep ruts of sinful patterns and addiction.
It’s true in the fight for faithfulness in the ordinary and mundane.
In these trials and in countless unnamed varieties, the testing of your faith is producing steadfastness — faith that goes the distance.
The Lord is actively at work in your trials, supplying what you need. He is producing in you the patient endurance you need to remain steadfast until the end. He is doing so in a wonder-working way that shows his greatness and his glory: he takes the trial — the very place in which your need is most evident — and he makes that wilderness place the fertile ground in which steadfastness grows and blossoms.
If there’s a common fruit that the Lord is producing in varied trials, I believe there’s a common means, as well. Recently I’ve been praying one of the apostle Paul’s prayers: “May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ” (2 Thess. 3:5). One of the ways that the Lord produces steadfastness in us, in any trial, is by directing our hearts to himself and his character.
In trials of various kinds, the love of God is an anchor and a comfort for the heart.
The love of God is eternal, fixed, and unchanging. It isn’t rooted in anything that you have done or any merit you possess. You are loved because the Lord set his love on you and chose you (Deut. 7:7-8). He chose you before the beginning of time (Eph. 1:4-5) — his love had no beginning! One author meditates on this truth:
“How tranquilizing for the heart: since God’s love toward me had no beginning, it can have no ending! Since it is true that ‘from everlasting to everlasting’ he is God, and since God is ‘love,’ then it is equally true that ‘from everlasting to everlasting’ he loves his people.”1
Meditating on the love of God cannot fail to produce steadfastness, but Paul also prays, “May the Lord direct your hearts . . . to the steadfastness of Christ.” If the love of God is a comfort for your heart, the steadfastness of Christ establishes your heart.
In trials of various kinds, remember Jesus Christ, your High Priest, who was tempted in every way as you are yet without sin (Heb. 4:15). Look to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of your faith, who faithfully endured and is seated now at the right hand of God (Heb. 12:1). His steadfastness is not only your example, though; as the Lord directs your heart to Christ’s steadfastness, he also strengthens you with hope because you have been united with Christ! As you are transformed into his likeness, his steadfastness is being produced in you!
In trials of various kinds, the love of God and the steadfastness of Christ are there to comfort and establish your heart. The steadfastness that James promises is found in the steadfast love of God and in the steadfastness of Christ. But if we’re honest, our hearts don’t naturally lean in this direction, no matter what trial we’re facing. Because of that, the first part of Paul’s prayer is especially meaningful: “May the Lord direct your hearts….”
This is heart work that the Lord is faithful to do. He is able to do it; after all, “the king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the LORD; he turns it wherever he will” (Prov. 21:1). The God who gives his people a new heart (Ez. 36:26) will also direct your heart to himself (1 Chron. 29:18). When you are weak, “the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one” (2 Thess. 3:3).
No matter what variety of trial you’re facing today, consider praying this simple prayer: “Lord, direct my heart to your love and to the steadfastness of Christ.” Watch and listen for the ways he directs your heart. Open his word and ask him for strength to comprehend and know his love (Eph. 3:18-19). Let him lift your eyes to look to Christ’s patient endurance (Heb. 12:1). Quiet yourself, be still, and respond in worship to the evidence of his love and steadfastness.
In trials of various kinds, the Lord is producing steadfastness in you by directing your heart to his love and the steadfastness of Christ. Take heart, friend — in every variety of trial — because he is faithful. He’s promised to produce steadfastness in trials of every kind, and he is actively keeping that promise in your trial today.
Arthur W. Pink, The Attributes of God. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1975), 100-101.