Walking in the Word with Breast Cancer

19 Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; 20 for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. - James 1:19-20 I just love these two verses - they are a treasure in my heart because of the way they have transformed me. In fact, these two verses are probably the most repeated verses in my head. Every morning we have a moment of silence at school before our pledge, these are the words I say. I want to be a person who listens well - to my students, to my colleagues, to my students’ parents, and I have not always done that well. I have always had such a tendency to jump to conclusions, make assumptions, judge others, problem-solve, or even attack before the other person gets their full thoughts out. I have had to work so hard at learning to really listen to people, to let them share their thoughts fully, without any judgment before I open my mouth. I still have so far to go - it’s still my tendency, especially w...

Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. - James 1:18 When James says we are brought forth by the word of truth, he uses the same words that are used at the beginning of Genesis, “Let the earth bring forth living creatures..”. It’s reference is to creation through the act of being born. God created all life on this earth, and He created each one of us individually; but He doesn’t just create, He re-creates each of us when we are born again.  We know from scripture that we are born once when we physically enter existence, but we are born again when we are chosen by Christ to begin living under His law. It is an act of His will that we be saved, not our own. When we choose to surrender our lives to Jesus, to confess our sins to Him and accepts that He died on the cross so that we may live, the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in our hearts and we are born again. Our lives should be forever changed at this p...

16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers.17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. - James 1:16-17 People walking through trials are especially vulnerable to attacks from the enemy, even those with a strong faith. Our very faith in God can be tempted when we face our deepest challenges with questions like, “Why would a God who loves you so much allow you to walk through this?” or “Where is your God now?” or “Why didn’t He answer your prayer?” The enemy wants nothing more than to win you over to his side, so he will attack you at your weakest, and he’ll hit you with with your biggest fear. It’s usually at these times that he’ll direct your attention to people living in this world who seem to be doing quite well without God. You will be tempted to take your eyes off God in the midst of your trials by the deception of the enemy, and when you do, you will not persevere ...

13 Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am being tempted by God," for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one.14 But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.15 Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death. - James 1:13-15 We must recognize that the power of the enemy is strong, but the desires of the flesh are even more powerful. As a believer in Christ, you must learn to recognize and overcome temptation. If you don’t, James warns us that you’re on a path to death.  Overcoming temptation begins with recognizing where it all starts. Some believe God tests us through our temptations, but we learn here that is not the case. God does test our faith through trials to reveal our true hearts, but He does not tempt anyone into sin. He tests us to reveal where our hearts lack submission so that He can refine us and grow us. Because of the existence of Satan, and be...

Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. - James 1:12 In the first few verses of James, we are told about the purpose of trials - they are to grow us and strengthen us in our faith. Trials produce endurance as they test our faith, and are part of God’s plan to perfect us. James expands on this idea in verse 12.  Our trials demonstrate the perseverance and demonstrate whether our faith is genuine.  Anyone can repeat the words of the sinner’s prayer and claim salvation as their own. It isn’t the words that save us, it’s the changing of the heart - and this isn’t so readily apparent when we first say the words. Our response when things get tough, when the challenges of life hit, is where our faith is truly demonstrated. Jesus tells us in Matthew 7:21 Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven. Just because we say th...

9 Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation,10 and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass he will pass away. 11 For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits. - James 1:9-11 James makes this comparison a few times in his book - he is comparing a poor, humble man and a rich man. Here, rich most likely is referring to monetary status, but it can also refer to material possessions or position. James is also not only comparing the wealth of a man, but the attitude toward the wealth. Being rich in and of itself will not cause us to perish, it is our attitude or focus on the money that he is addressing. “In the midst of his pursuit” helps us to understand he’s referring to the pursuit of possessions.  In other words, if our focus is on pursuing money or material things or power, then we will perish. These things are of the wo...

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. —James 1:5-8 We can tap into wisdom any time we need it. In those moments we just don’t know what to do, we have access to wisdom. When we are faced with a difficult decision, or we are trying to find the right words, He promises to give us wisdom any time we ask. Perhaps we need to better understand a situation, or we need to see it from a different perspective, perhaps we want answers to difficult question, or we want truths revealed. All we need to do is ask and He will pour His wisdom on us generously.   I have spent far too many days in my own wisdom, reacting to situations without seeking ...