Repeat after me: I am not God’s PR manager.
I can’t be the only one who feels like being a good Christian means always being positive. Look for the blessing in disguise, find a silver lining, or be thankful when the heartbreak and devastation hit. Count it all joy, right?
But when James says to count it all joy when we face trials (James 1:2), he isn’t telling us to act like hard or bad things are secretly good things. He says to know that testing our faith produces patience (vs.3). The word used here, hupomone, means hopeful endurance. The more we go through, the more we know God and find true hope in Him.
See, Christianity offers something that the world can’t—but it’s not what we think.
I look at the world around me and see unbelievers who are thriving. They have good jobs, stable families, and abundance. We sometimes act like these blessings are the primary benefits of Christianity. But if the world can attain them without Christ, what do they gain by submitting to Him?
James’ answer: hopeful endurance.
The Certainty of Heartbreak, The Alternative of True Hope
One certainty in life is that every person will experience heartbreak, devastation, trials, and challenges. Jesus assured His disciples of that in John 16:33: “In the world you will have tribulation.”
When I downplay the impact hardship has on my life or pretend that I don’t ask God why or express anger about the bad things that happen, I process life just like the world does. Neither suppression nor indulgence highlight hope as the better option.
But authenticity shines that light on reality: In the midst of hardships, God is present to hear my questions, hold my anger, and heal my heart. As I process life with God, He cultivates true hope in me. Hope that there is purpose and goodness to come.
Jesus has Already Overcome
The world says time heals all wounds, but I don’t think that’s true. Time may allow all wounds to scab over. But until we allow God to heal us, we’re one wrong move away from reopening the wound. The world tells us to bury our wounds and build up walls. When the grief, anger, or despair wells up again, we have to recognize that we never found healing.
There’s a second clause to Jesus’ sentence in John 16:33, one that offers us hope: “In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
The idea that time heals all wounds means that, after enough time, it doesn’t hurt and doesn’t matter. But the things that change us stay with us.
Remembering that Jesus has already overcome this world and all it’s tribulation allows us to shift our focus from the temporary to the eternal.
Everyone knows on some level that this world and life are temporary, regardless of your position on life after death. Christians have a beautiful hope not just of heaven, where everything will be restored, but also for this temporary life. Jesus has already won the victory. Whatever we go through, we have the assurance that it will be used to grow God’s kingdom. Nothing is wasted.
Glorify God in Our Hardships
What if, instead of trying to manage God’s image and public relations, we seek to glorify Him in the midst of our heartbreak and hardship? What if, instead of pretending that everything is OK and we are thankful that something bad happened, we just acknowledge that it was bad, that we are hurt, and that God is still good despite it?
Unbelievers (and believers, too) aren’t unaware of the tribulation in the world. Everyone experiences it firsthand. Our testimony is not that the Christian life only nets good things—that’s not remotely true. Our testimony is that God is good through all things. He is present in the pain. He is comfort in our grief. He is peace for our unanswered questions.
Our testimony is not that the Christian life only nets good things—that’s not remotely true. Our testimony is that God is good through all things.
This is what the Christian life offers that can’t be matched by the world’s pleasures and power. Humans aren’t actually looking to fill a void with “good” things. One way or another, we know they won’t satisfy. We’re all longing for peace and presence, for restoration in this life, and the hope and assurance of completed restoration when all is said and done.
To only share about the good things in life is to present a false gospel and a false premise of Christianity. If we, purposely or accidentally, encourage people to be saved to have a “good life” according to worldly standards, we’re setting people up to fail. There’s a reason why people often find God in the depths of worldly despair rather than at the peak of success.
True hope requires a need. When we are at our most hopeless, beaten down by circumstances, Jesus reminds us of the guaranteed hope we have in Him.
Let’s not hide the hardships we encounter. Instead, let’s choose to share authentically and glorify God in every situation. People may not come flocking to us, but our examples will dwell in their minds when their good lives crumble. And when they need hope, they just may come asking questions about the one true source.
