There are some things we don’t think about until we need them: insurance when we’ve had an auto accident, generators when the power goes out, or even relationships when we’re in sore need of comfort or counsel. We might put faith in the same category, not thinking about it until we need it. However, we need to think of faith more often. We need to remember to trust in God. Without him we are nothing and can do nothing (Jn 15:5). God isn’t there in case of an accident; He’s the maker of our way and our daily guide (Ex 13:21; Jn 14:6). He’s not the backup generator; He’s the constant power at work in the lives of believers (Eph 1:19). He also doesn’t want to be our friend in time of need but our constant companion (Mt 28:20).
Sadly, we sometimes go through life as though we can handle ourselves very well, thank you. The truth is that we need God. Trials become a blessing in that they remind us to live in faith. Trust in God should be the mindset in which Christians make their home. My determination to stay safe in God’s care grants me access to everything I need. James says it makes me “perfect and complete, lacking in nothing” (Ja 1:4). From a certain perspective, that means that trials help me grow strong. From another point of view, James says that trials remind me of my weakness so that I’ll learn to depend on God’s strength. In his strength and my weakness I stand complete.
Trials remind us how needy we are, and they cause us to turn to God for security. The rock climber checks his harness, because he knows he’s going to fall. The sky-jumper checks his parachute, because it’s not a “maybe” that he’ll need it. Trials cause us to examine the dependability of the things in which we trust, and the more we examine God, the more trustworthy we find him, the more we want him all the time. He is perfect, lacking in nothing, and so when we cling to him, the “full effect” is that we’ll never doubt—even in the desperate moments—that we have everything we need.
—Justin Dobbs