Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he
has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has
promised to those who love him. Let no one say when he is tempted, “I
am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and
he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured
and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived
gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth
death.
Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every
perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights
with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. Of his own
will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a
kind of firstfruits of his creatures. James 1: 12-18
God is good. That's pretty much a
given, isn't it? He is good. I know that – head knowledge – but
do I truly believe it? Do I believe that all of His gifts are good
and perfect? That every day is a gift from Him even if I don't feel
it in that moment?
We discussed this passage at a college
group Bible study last night, and what mostly struck me was the
discussion we had about the fact that keeping our eyes focused on
God's goodness and gifts can be a deterrent to sin, and how the
opposite is true as well – losing sight of God's goodness can make
one vulnerable to compromise, justification, and slipping into things
you didn't want to do and places you swore you'd never go.
It is easy to lose sight of God and His
will, bit by bit, piece by piece, until it feels like I'm a mile away
and I don't know how I got there. Once I have lost sight of God's
goodness and generosity, satan comes and whispers more lies, states
God is not good, that He means harm for me, or at the very least that
He is bent on keeping from me what should be mine.
At that point, it becomes an easy thing
to simply create my own “happiness”. Trust me – I've tried it,
even to the point of creating a romance where there should not be one
– and eventually breaking a man's heart in the process. Even during
the “romance”, it became too easy to slip a little here, justify
a bit there, and then find myself deeper in justification than I
thought I'd ever be.
So I backed up. I redetermined what is
and what should be. I prioritized. It is easy, in a moment, to
determine; “I will keep my eyes on God, I will be fully content to
wait on His timing!”. Not so easy is the actual outworking of that,
the daily struggle to maintain contentment – it can be very
difficult.
But it is so necessary.
If I don't have hope that God will work
good in my life, then I can only trust in myself to work that out. If
my eyes aren't set fully on His goodness and mercy and love –
rather than the trappings of comfort in this world – I begin to
wonder how to give myself the gifts I expect from God. The problem is
that only God can give good and perfect gifts.
Only He knows my past, present and
future. Only He knows what I need to do the most meaningful and
fruitful work for Him. I may think I know what I need, but often what
I think I need and what God gives me in reality are two very
different things. I may not see it at first, but I hold fast to the
promise; God gives good and perfect gifts continually, and He never
changes.
And we
know that for those who love God all things work together for good,
for those who are called according to his purpose. - Romans 8:28
That is the promise He has made, that
if I love Him and am called according to His purpose, He will work
all things together for my good. Even if the situation isn't my
“ideal”. Really, my ideal should be based on His anyway. What is His ideal? Whatever brings the most glory to God; in me, through me, and reaching out to touch others with His love. I claim that ideal as my own!
It will be difficult, to keep my eyes
and heart fixed on the prize before me, on God's perfect will, rather
than the comfort, distraction, and temptations of the world. I will
falter, and I will fail; perfection will only be reached when I've
stepped into heaven.
But I can, every day, make the
determination and commitment that today
I will focus on the Lord. Today I will stand firm. Today I
will be content in whatever situation comes my way, and whatever I
have to deal with. I can only live one day at a time, and I will live
today with my eyes fixed on Jesus.
