Count It All Joy

By Adenuga Sunday Joseph

We are admonished in the book of James to count it all joy when we fall into different types of temptations. I used to wonder in those days why I should count it a thing of joy each time I faced a difficulty, afterall such experiences of difficulty are not palatable nor convenient to us as human beings. As I grew older in the faith and by my personal observation of things here on earth, I began to see the wisdom of God in this admonition.

The first reason is that nothing is permanent, things change, events pass away, even people die, so when you adopt the attitude of counting it all joy because you are aware of the temporary nature of the problem, then you are the wise one. You need to realize that temptations, trials and sufferings are not designed to mar you but to make you, this is the truth as I have proved this statement over and over again in my life and in the lives of many people in my congregation.

Let me also remind you that Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior did not promise us a trouble free journey in life but a safe landing in

peace of mind. Consider some of these statements from the Holy Scriptures:

In the world you will have tribulations, but be of good cheers... John 16: 33

Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but The Lord delivereth him... Psalm 34: 19

Endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ... 2Timothy 2: 3

Life is full of battles... Ephesians 6: 10-12

Life's battles are originally spiritual 2Corintians 10: 3-6

The devil is out to kill steal and destroy... John 10: 10

There are so many of such in the Bible.

You need to count it joy because the Bible says that you are of God, meaning you belong to God, and that you are made up of God's stuff. There is something about you that has a touch of divinity. You are loaded with possibility. problems are made to provide you with the opportunity to prove that you are more than conquerors. When you have problems, difficulties, challenges, then it is good, count it joy for the privilege of seeing a miracle soon. That you are having it hard now is an indication of a victory knocking your door so count it joy.