Stress Is Purposeful

The testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

—James 1:3–8

James next reminded us that stress is not simply predictable, problematic, and paradoxical. Stress is also purposeful. We can actually benefit from stress.

To be specific, stress can help produce purity in our lives. James spoke of the “testing” of our faith that happens in the process of stress. Simon Peter used the same word to say that various trials come our way so “that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:7). This same word is also translated purging. Picture a piece of precious metal being heated until it is liquid and its impurities rise to the top and are scraped off. Only pure metal remains. By using this word, James was indicating that our stressful trials are for a purpose. They have their own way of refining us.

Stress also has the purpose of producing perseverance in our lives. Peter said that this testing results in patience or perseverance. The word literally means “to stand up under.” Only trials of our faith can prove the depth of our faith and the strength of our character. You may be in a time of testing and the heat is on. Know that there is a purpose in your trials. God is perfecting you, enabling you to “stand up under” whatever comes your way.

Another purpose of stress is to lead us to perfection: “that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.” The word perfect here means “to carry to its end, to become full grown, to mature.” The word picture is of a student who goes to school to earn a diploma. Along the way he may miss a few math problems, fail a test or two, and confuse some historical facts. But all of that is incidental to finishing his studies and getting his degree. Our goal in Christian living is spiritual maturity. Tests come along the way, and they are there to bring us to fruition and maturity.

Stress can also prompt prayer: “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God.” There is a difference between wisdom and knowledge. Knowledge is the accumulation of facts. Most all of us can grow in knowledge if we stay in the library long enough. Wisdom, however, is the ability to take the facts at hand and, using heavenly judgment, apply what we know to the earthly situations around us. This was the point of Paul’s prayer for the church at Ephesus. Paul asked “that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom” (Ephesians 1:17). It was also Paul’s prayer for the Colossians: “We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives” (Colossians 1:9 NIV). During stressful trials, we often have a tendency to lose perspective and direction. We need wisdom.

In our educated and sophisticated world, we need wisdom. The present generation is more progressive than all those before it. We travel farther and fly faster and higher. More young people have graduate degrees than ever before. Knowledge is exploding. We accumulate data in a way that would have been unfathomable to my father’s generation. Technology advances so quickly that the latest and greatest computers are out-of-date a few months after their release.

Yes, knowledge is exploding, and tools for obtaining knowledge have become more advanced, but wisdom is clearly lacking. Families are broken. Lives are in shambles. Suicide rates are higher than ever. Evidence of Christian morality is at a record low. Our world is dark and violent, constantly on the brink of one chaotic episode after another. Wisdom is lacking, but—as James said—“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God.”

To whom does God give divine discernment? To those who ask. We don’t get wisdom in school or from practical experience. Wisdom is God’s gift to us. And His desire is to give it “liberally” when we ask. Yet many of us who need wisdom in the midst of a stressful trial seem too proud to ask for it. We can learn about this from Solomon.

When the young King Solomon was about to begin ruling Israel, God presented him with an incredible proposition: “Ask! What shall I give you?” (1 Kings 3:5). And Solomon’s request? “Give to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil” (1 Kings 3:9). At that moment he could have asked for anything, and Solomon asked for wisdom—he knew he needed it.

Here is how life goes when we lack wisdom. The stressful crisis comes. We try to cope. We call the doctor to get another prescription. We make an appointment with our counselor. We order the latest self-help book. Do we think to bring the situation to the Lord and lay it at His feet in prayer? There is nothing wrong with those other approaches, but so often we consider prayer a last resort instead of the starting point for dealing with stress. As Psalm 118:8 says, “It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man.”

James had more to say about prayer at this point. How we ask is important: “Let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord.” (James 1:6–7). Not everyone who asks for wisdom receives it. Wisdom is granted to those who believe, who ask in faith. Jesus put it thus: “Whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them” (Mark 11:24). And where do we find this faith? From the Bible. “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17). The prayer prayed in faith is born of the word when the Holy Spirit quickens our hearts. Prayer without the truths from the Bible has no direction, and the Bible unaccompanied by prayer lacks dynamic.

The person who lives with doubt in times of stressful trials is “double-minded . . . unstable in all his ways” (James 1:8). The doubter is trying to serve two masters. A part of him shouts, “I believe!” and another whispers, “I doubt.” James said this type of person is “unstable in all his ways,” resulting in increased stress instead of any stress relief.

Stress can actually be purposeful to those who dare to become vulnerable and accountable to God. What is our greatest need in times of stress? Wisdom for how to deal with the issues of life. How do we get wisdom? We ask for it. Who gives it? Our great Creator God who sees when a sparrow falls and cares much more about you. When does He give it? When we ask in believing prayer, for “without faith it is impossible to please Him” (Hebrews 11:6). How will He give it? Liberally.

Finally, King David’s Psalm 111 adds to the discussion: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom” (v. 10). The man or woman who has no reverence for God lacks true wisdom. He or she may be highly intelligent and have accumulated a multitude of facts, but no wisdom. Wisdom does not come from Plato or Aristotle or Socrates or Kierkegaard, or any other philosopher. Look again at the true source of wisdom and go ahead! “Ask of God!”