“Consider it pure joy when you face trials.”
I used to read that and think,
“Yeah… that sounds nice, James. Have you ever tried payroll stress?!”
Because when life gets hard, joy is usually NOT my first reaction.
To be honest…
Frustration shows up first.
Then control.
Then the urge to fix everything immediately.
But over time, I’ve realized something important….
James wasn’t saying pain is fun…
He was saying pain is a useful tool… There are lessons in the trials…
And when I change my perspective on pain or trials, it changed everything…
I don’t think most of us don’t struggle with faith.
I think we struggle with perspective…
We see difficulty as an interruption.
The truth is, God often uses it as construction…
That gap is where growth happens.
Why resistance exists at all…
Nothing grows without resistance.
Muscles don’t grow from comfort.
Leadership doesn’t grow from ease.
Wisdom doesn’t grow from everything going our way.
If you’ve ever lifted weights, you know this.
The resistance is the point.
Remove resistance and nothing changes…
Pain, pressure, delay, disappointment.
These are not accidents.
I think they are the tools.
The real issue is we don’t like the tool being used.
When things get hard, my first instinct is to ask,
“What did I do wrong?” “Why do I deserve this?” “Or just a quick “WTF?”
But many times the better question is,
“What is being formed right now?” “How is this growing me.” “What’s the lesson here?”
Trials don’t necessarily mean you’re off track.
Often they can mean you’re being strengthened for what’s next…
Patience doesn’t come from waiting in line.
It comes from wanting control and learning restraint.
Endurance doesn’t come from smooth seasons.
It comes from carrying weight longer than you planned.
Maturity doesn’t come from winning.
It comes from surviving and staying grounded.
James wasn’t glorifying pain…
He was pointing to the outcome.
What joy actually means here
Joy is not excitement.
Joy is confidence.
Confidence that what you’re walking through is not wasted.
Confidence that something is being built even if you can’t see it yet.
Confidence that the process is shaping you, not breaking you.
Joy is choosing trust over panic.
I don’t wake up excited when life applies pressure.
But I’ve learned to pause and say,
“Alright. Something is being trained here, and I GET to learn and get better.”
That shift alone changes how I respond…
If you lead people or run a business, you know this already.
The hardest seasons usually create the strongest leaders.
The pressure that exposes weakness also reveals character.
The season that stretches you also sharpens you.
The challenge that slows you down often redirects you.
I’ve never grown most in seasons of ease.
I’ve grown when I was forced to choose patience over reaction.
Clarity over control.
Trust over urgency.
Those seasons didn’t feel joyful in the slightest…
But they were productive.
And I’m better because of them.
Don’t pretend it’s easy.
Don’t fake positivity.
And don’t rush the lesson.
Instead, ask better questions.
What is this season teaching me?
Where am I being asked to mature?
What is being refined that comfort would never touch?
Then do the hardest thing.
Stay steady.
Endurance is built by staying present, not escaping.
Patience is formed by restraint, not speed.
Wisdom grows when you stop fighting the process.
The pressure you’re under is not pointless.
It’s producing something you’ll need later.
You don’t have to enjoy the trial to grow from it.
You just have to stop assuming it’s working against you.
Sometimes the very thing you want removed
is the thing preparing you for what you’ve been praying for…
If this resonated with you, you’ll find more insights, tools, tips, and ways to connect with me on my website at TimBranyan.com
