Don’t just act joyful Be genuinely joyful.

You are not just to act joyful, but to be genuinely joyful. It is a matter of will, not of feelings, and should be your conscious, determined commitment from you as a faithful believer. And because God commands it, it is within your ability, the Spirit’s provides, to every true Christian. When you have genuine faith in Jesus Christ, even the worst of troubles should be cause for thanksgiving and rejoicing.

The more you rejoice in your trials, the more you realize that they are not liabilities but privileges, ultimately beneficial and not harmful, no matter how destructive and painful the immediate experience of them might appear. When you face trials with the attitude that God is giving a warning, you can discover that the greatest part of the joy is drawing closer to the Source of all joy the Lord. Through Gods warnings you become more sensitive to His presence, His goodness, His love, and His grace. Your prayer life increases, as does your interest in and study of the Word, and in each of those ways your joy increases all the more.

You will learn to be content in whatever circumstances you are in. You’ll know how to get along with humble means, and you’ll also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance you learn the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and in suffering. Your values determine your evaluations. If you value comfort more than character, then trials will upset you. If you value the material and physical more than the spiritual, you will not be able to ‘count it all joy!’ If you live only for the present and forget the future, the trials will make you bitter, not better.

You will develop sturdiness by repeatedly being tested and prevailing. The more tests you pass, the more strength you will have. “No temptation has overtaken you but what is common to humans; and God is faithful, He will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation He will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it” (1 Cor. 10:13).

This is the end result of trials: Maturity, Completeness, Not Lacking in anything of spiritual importance and value. “After you have suffered for a little while,” 1 Pet. 5:10: “The God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you” Trials are Privileges they bring you closer to the Source of all joy.