The testing of your faith
develops perseverance.
—James 1:3
Have you noticed that those who complain the most often have the least to complain about? People of position, power, and possessions can be difficult to please.
On the other hand, some who live with pain, poverty, and problems display a remarkable spirit of cheerfulness and gratitude.
Robert Louis Stevenson died at forty-four. Ill most of his life, he spent much of it bedridden but upbeat. “I refuse to let my attitude be determined by a row of medicine bottles,” he said.
Here’s Paul’s take on it: “These troubles and sufferings of ours are, after all, quite small and won’t last very long . . . The troubles will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever” (2 Cor 4:17, 18).
Contentment is the fruit of
disposition, not position.