Joy in the Middle of Trouble

Read

James 1:2-3 “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.”

Think

It sounds like a contradiction: Consider it joy when you face trials. Who says that? Certainly not our culture. In the world around us, trials are something to avoid, numb, complain about, or escape. But James, the half-brother of Jesus, says something radically different. He tells us to count those trials as joy. Not because pain feels good. Not because difficulty is easy. But because trials are doing something inside us that comfort never could.

That doesn’t mean God delights in your suffering. It means he refuses to waste it. In the economy of the Kingdom, even hardship can become holy ground. And one of the most powerful things that grows in that soil is joy.

Joy in trouble is not about pretending everything is fine. It’s not about putting on a happy face or quoting verses out of context to silence your real pain. Joy in the middle of trials is about recognizing that God is at work even when life feels broken. It’s choosing to believe that the story is not over. It’s learning to see through the lens of eternity instead of the narrow tunnel of the moment. James says trials test your faith—and that testing produces perseverance. It makes you stronger, deeper, more dependent on Jesus, and less defined by your circumstances. It doesn’t mean your pain is less painful. It means it’s not pointless. And when you begin to believe that, joy takes root.

Think about it this way: no one celebrates while running up a mountain. But they do celebrate when they realize what the climb has produced in them. Stronger lungs. Sharper focus. Deeper grit. The view from the top is beautiful, but the strength was built in the struggle. Joy works the same way. It often grows quietly, even invisibly, in the hardest places. This doesn’t mean you should slap a smile on every time life gets hard. It means you hold on to hope like it matters. It means you start to notice joy not instead of sorrow, but alongside it. The people with the deepest joy are not the ones with the easiest stories. They’re the ones who’ve walked through trials and found Jesus faithful at every turn.

Joy in trouble might look like worshiping when you don’t feel like it. It might look like trusting God when you don’t have all the answers. It might look like choosing gratitude in the middle of grief. It might look like getting out of bed and trying again—not because you’re strong, but because you know he is.

If you’re walking through something heavy right now, this might be one of the hardest devotionals to read. And that’s okay. You don’t need to feel joyful to have joy. You just need to keep showing up. Keep trusting. Keep opening your heart to the possibility that God is not absent in your pain, but present. Not silent, but speaking. Not punishing, but producing something deeper in you than comfort ever could.

Real joy doesn’t erase sorrow. It gives you the courage to keep going through it. So when James says, “Consider it pure joy,” he’s not asking you to fake anything. He’s inviting you to see trouble differently. To lean in instead of pulling away. To trust that the very thing you wish would end might be the place where your faith is being refined and your joy is being forged. And one day, you’ll look back on this trial and say, “That was hard. But God was faithful. And somehow, joy grew there too.”

Apply

Think about a trial you’re walking through—or one you’ve recently come out of. Ask this: What has this trial revealed in me? And what has it revealed about God? Write it down. Then share it with someone you trust. Your story could be the joy-spark someone else needs.

Pray

God, I don’t always feel joyful in the middle of pain. But I believe you’re working even when I don’t understand. Help me trust your purpose in the middle of this trial. Grow perseverance in me. And let joy take root—even here. In Jesus’ name. Amen.