James 5 - I'm in Trouble, What do I do?

Here is a great 4 point guideline for facing and coming through troubles in your Christian life, all in one chapter.

First, (13) “Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray…”. Period, point blank, take your concerns to the Lord in prayer. Let’s face it, we already tried running our lives, that’s how we ended up in trouble in the first place. As Philippians 4:6 says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” God already knows your trouble, so take it to Him, trust in Him, rely on Him.

Secondly, you have taken your trouble to the Lord, but it’s been 3 seconds and you’re still in trouble, well be patient, all things in the Lord our God’s time, not our own. (7) “Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord's coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains. (8) You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near.” You took you’re trouble to the Lord to let Him handle it, because we as humans obviously couldn’t, then why do we expect God’s infinitely wise and perfect solution to be on our time and schedule? Aren’t we the ones who messed it up to begin with? Why do we want to have any part of it now? Leave it with God on His terms, in His time, for He knows infinitely better than we do. God loves us unconditionally, more than anyone else, so He wants the very, very best for us; sometimes perfection takes time, be patient, persevere, and trust in the Lord! (11) “As you know, we consider blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job's perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.”


Thirdly, when God answers your prayer, solves your problem, relieves you of your trouble, let Him know how thankful you are for it. (13) “… Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise.” This is a crucial step, we often as humans take all of our troubles to God, but forget to (or flat out don’t) thank Him for it. God is so good, He has loved us so much, given us so much, cared for us when no one else would, He deserves our praise just for being Him, how much more praise does He deserve for answering our prayers, A LOT MORE! Don’t leave this step out guys, PRAISE THE LORD!

Finally, when you are blessed, remember you are blessed and don’t hoard your wealth or mistreat others less fortunate than you. Remember you are blessed, God gave to you to be a good steward and be a blessing to others. It is all God’s anyway, and He can take it all back anytime He wants. See what happens to those who are not good stewards of wealth: “(1) Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming upon you. (2) Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. (3) Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days.” The wealth disappears, even worse, you have corrupted your soul! It is awesome to be blessed by the Lord, remember that and be a blessing to others.

Dear Lord, thank you for being You. Thank you, God that we can bring our troubles to You and You take care of them for us. Thank you, Lord for Your infinite wisdom and patience with us, even though we lose our patience. Help us to endure and persevere until Your time comes to answer our prayers. Dear Lord, let us always remember to praise and worship You, for You alone are worthy to be praised! Lord, please help us to be proper stewards of Your blessings, so we will not hoard, but will cheerfully give to bless others and show Your goodness, so we all can live life more fully and abundantly. All these things I ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.