Verse: James 5:10-11 GNT
10 My friends, remember the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. Take them as examples of patient endurance under suffering.11 We call them blessed because they endured. You have heard of Job’s patience, and you know how the Lord provided for him in the end. For the Lord is full of mercy and compassion.
Devotion
We certainly live in a hurried world–one where there is need for immediate gratification. In pain and suffering we press for immediate relief. I would assume that on more than one occasion you have experienced a level of suffering or excruciating waiting periods. If you say, “My life hasn’t been so bad, I don’t think that I have really suffered,” just remember that suffering is subjective. By definition it is a “state of pain, distress, or hardship” which is relative to you. No one can down-play your experiences or how they make you feel.
James urges us to remember the prophets who endured much while honoring the Lord, never giving up speaking of Him. He says, “We call them blessed because they endured. You have heard of Job’s patience, and you know how the Lord provided for him in the end. For the Lord is full of mercy and compassion.” It sounds like there are two options before us: to suffer alone and wait-out the rain, or to stay steadfast, honoring and worshiping God through the storm. The way that I see it, one seems much better than the other in that we will receive blessing and provision in full measure.
Let’s take the year 2020 as an example. It is all that anyone can talk about. There are jokes, memes, and documentaries about this year alone. It has been a whirlwind with seemingly never-ending suffering. We have been waiting out what seems like one of the longest difficult seasons. Looking on this year I have been on a sort of roller coaster with my endurance and patience. For a while I am grounded in the Lord, then out of nowhere I start feeling like throwing in the towel. I’ve experienced a small bit of every part of 2020: COVID-19, unemployment, death, loss of hope, loneliness, division, broken relationships, financial struggle, separation from church, lack of community. It’s manageable to endure for a short while but when you mix in suffering with patience it is difficult to be in it for the long haul.
The best thing that this year–and all other seasons of suffering–have revealed is my great need for God. I realize how necessary it is to stay grounded because I need him to intervene, I need him to provide and to bless. Sometimes the waiting period is when we are forced to sit back and receive clarity. I recently heard a beautiful illustration of the winter season bringing clarity. It struck me as an astounding new thought because when I have thought about the cold winter I think of the dead trees that are bare. Everything seems lifeless. In this illustration the Lord was revealing that the barren trees actually allow us to see farther. We can look through a forest and see clearly all that is in front of us. God didn’t make one season to be worse than the others, he wouldn’t make a single one that wasn’t beautiful. We have to ask Him to change our perspective to see what He sees. Don’t you love the clarity that winter brings?
Prayer
Father thank you for being ready to walk with us through our seasons of pain and waiting. Thank you for your mercy and your compassion. Teach us that our neediness for you is our honor and not our shame. Lord let us be steadfast and grounded in your truth during the whirlwind seasons of life. When I am looking at something with the wrong perspective, Lord give me your eyes. I am so thankful for the clarity that winter brings. We love you Father and we confess that we need you. We need you. We need you. Sustainer, Life-Giver, Father, Friend, we love you. Amen.
Author: Jillian Tulowitzky
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