FAITH UNDER TRIAL
Consider it wholly joyful, my brethren, whenever you are enveloped in or encounter trials of any sort or fall into various temptations. (James 1:2 AMP)
God is interested in your character and your whole person, not just your immediate comfort.
Mark Hankins
I was watching a documentary on how people make pottery. Pottery is baked in extreme heat to make it durable and hard, so it is usable. I thought it was interesting that they know a pot is done by the sound it makes. Many times trouble will hit you and get you into serious oven situations. If you stay silent while in the oven, then you are going to be in the oven a long time. But if you will just go ahead and shout for joy, you will make it through!
God wants you to hold steady and stop squirming out of your problems and difficulties prematurely. The natural human tendency is to try to find a way to get out from under the pressure. You have to realize that your faith is on trial, and the devil is trying to knock that faith right out of you. Mix patience with your faith and it will take you through the pressure. Let God build character in you and make you strong enough to receive blessings that you may not have been able to receive before.
Confession: I refuse to give up! I am going to allow my faith to be on trial, and I will not lose!