Dear Friends,
The book of Job tells us that “man is born unto trouble” (Job 5:7) so you are either meeting trouble now or are likely to meet it in the future. How can you deal with it? Today’s devotional will help. God bless you.

Because of Calvary,
John Janney

• James 1:2-4 (ESV)

  Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

“Some of us can say to affliction, ‘Come in, and welcome, for the costliest jewels we ever possessed were brought by you; you have done us more good than all our joys put together.’ We should have had no harvest if God had left us like the hard road outside the field; but the soil has been cut up by the sharp plough, and often our very soul has been grievously tried as the harrow and the scarifier have gone over us again and again; but all these processes have caused us to bring forth fruit to the praise and glory of God. Therefore, again I say, welcome your troubles. Do not be sorry if they travel with you for a while, for they are good guests; many a time, by entertaining trouble, we have ‘entertained angels unawares.’” [Charles Haddon Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit XLV, (London: Passmore and Alabaster, 1899), p. 453]