Whenever

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, 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, NIV 1984).

My Musings – Sound a little bit perverse to anyone? Maybe throw in a little self-flagellation while we’re at it? Well, that would be entirely missing the point. The “pure joy” is not there for the “whenever.” It’s there for the “because.” We may not be “happy” about the “whenevers,” because happiness is most often dependent on circumstances. We can, however, have “pure joy,” despite the circumstances. But we need to let them “finish [their] work” if we want to become “mature and complete, not lacking anything.“

My Advice – The verse…