Is Your Faith Thriving or Simply Surviving?
“Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy?
You should sing praises.” (James 5:13, NLT)
Someone said that the problem with life is that it is so daily. Life is not made up of one peak experience to another. Much of life is made up of every day stuff. This means that how we apply our faith in our daily situation will make the difference between thriving and simply surviving.
James ends his letter with a series of practical steps we should incorporate in our daily lives. I believe that when we apply them, they will radically transform our ordinary life into an extraordinary and supernatural adventure with God.
Pray when suffering (13a)
Praise when happy (13b)
Be vulnerable and ask for help (verse 14)
Forgive and ask for forgiveness (verse 16)
Exercise your faith (verse 17and 18)
Invest in the lives of others (verse 19-20)
God wants your faith to thrive and not just survive. He desires that life with Him become one long celebration of His goodness and faithfulness. This includes our daily and seemingly monotonous days. For that to happen we must consciously put our faith into practice. The “everyday” is usually where life meets faith.
Remember: It’s not an ordinary life if it has been touched by an extraordinary God.