Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 

because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 

Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:2-4

These verses struck me today. When I think of trials, I think of those times in life where we are tested to our limits. There’s a death, a diagnosis, a broken marriage, a rebellious child. These times test us and we come out of them forever changed.

But what of those times and trials in between?

What about our daily lives, those little things that challenge us and tweak us during our day? Socks on the floor, a bad review at work, technological breakdowns, bad drivers, forgotten lunches, potty-training accidents, the list seems to go on forever.

How do we handle these trials? Do we let our frustration get the better of us? Do we lash out in anger? Take it out on our family? Seek the solace of food, alcohol, the internet?

These times don’t seem like pure joy, to me, when I’m in the middle of them. They seem like the opposite. But how I come out of them depends on what path I choose. I can choose to be caught up in the daily frustrations of life, to just say “that’s the way it is/that’s the way God made me/I can’t change it”. I can continue on in my set patterns and not imagine something better.

Or I can choose the way that brings about change in me. I can include God in my trials. He sees them and knows them and sees me in the midst of daily life. God is not only concerned with the epic things in life but the small things that grow us to be the people he intended us to be. Knowing that God works with us through these trials to develop our maturity and make us more complete people gives me hope. When I seek him, his patience, his wisdom, his perspective, how I interact with these daily trials is growing me into the person I want to be. Daily trials aren’t joyful in themselves, but as I persevere more often than I backslide I begin to see how God can change me through them and that is what brings me joy.