by Charissa Veal
CLEVELAND, Ga., (TMNews) –Dr. Stephen Rummage, Senior Pastor of Bell Shoals Baptist Church in Brandon, Fla., delivered a packed message to Truett-McConnell College’s students in a September 25th chapel service.
Using James 1:1-12, Rummage illustrated how Scripture teaches believers to trust God amidst the trials of their lives and encouraged those in the midst of trials to face them with joy because of the refining work God does through difficult circumstances.
“Every trial we face is a trail that will either take us closer to God or further away from God,” Rummage stated. “It all depends on how we respond to that trial.” He emphasized that trials will surely come, but the outcome will be determined by how each one responds.
“The Bible is not telling us here that trials are joyful….But the Bible does say that when you face a real trial, you can count it joy because you know that your God is working in and through and above that trial to bring blessing into your life,” Rummage said.
Working through the same passage of Scripture, Rummage further pointed out that believers can rejoice in their trials, specifically because God uses the trials to strengthen their patience, develop their maturity, increase their wisdom, build their faith, change their perspective, and amplify their victory.
Rummage’s admonitions to the students, however, also came with a warning: “If we pray for a life without trial, we will never become like [God’s] Son, Jesus,” he said. Rummage prays that, instead of trying to avoid the trials, those in attendance will embrace the opportunities to be molded into a reflection of Christ and cling more fervently to God during the trials that are guaranteed to come.
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Charissa Veal is a senior English major at Truett-McConnell College.
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