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Foreign.
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And happy Wednesday. Thanks for joining me on today's weekday podcast. My name is Chuck Allen, and I'm thrilled to be with you as we walk through the next few days, the first, second and third chapters of the book of James. The last couple of days, we've been in James chapter five, and if you miss them, I'd encourage you to drop back and listen in. But. But thanks again for being here. I want to ask you a silly question. Have you ever planted a tomato plant? I'm not big on gardening. It's not my favorite thing, but Jenny loves it, so we've had these elevated gardens where she likes to grow flowers and tomatoes. I don't get it, but whatever.
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My pop used to grow a bunch of tomatoes, and we would have these fierce Florida storms, and one of the first things he wanted to do after a storm was to go out and check his tomato plants.
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And I would be the thinking man. With that much wind, they're probably gone.
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But he would look at them, knowing they survived, and he would say, boy, what happens is the Lord allows a storm to happen in that tomato plant so it can get stronger for the next one.
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Hold on to that. Because in James, chapter one, verses two, three, four, he says, dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For. For. You know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow.
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So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you'll be perfect and complete, needing nothing.
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Hmm.
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Now, the first time that I really paid attention to that verse, my reaction was, james, were you on, like, some weird mushrooms? Are you serious, Joy? In the middle of this message?
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But when you look closely at what he's saying and what he's not saying, he's not telling us to pretend that trouble feels good.
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He's not asking us to fake it till we make it through the diagnosis or the layoff or the strained relationship or the divorce.
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He's saying, the trouble is an opportunity, something that can grow in this season that couldn't have grown any other way.
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And then there are those four little words. So let it grow.
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That's the part we usually fight. The storm comes, our first instinct is to get out of it as fast as we can. And you know what? There's nothing wrong with praying for relief.
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But James is also inviting us to ask a different question in our prayers. Not just God, how do I get out of this mess? But, God, what are you growing in me while I'm in the mess here? Is what I love about the
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very next verse. James knows that when we're in the middle of a hard and difficult season, we usually don't know what to do. So he says this in verse 5, if you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking.
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Did you catch that? Our generous God won't rebuke you for asking.
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Folks, that matters.
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Some of us grew up thinking of God as this stern teacher who just eye rolls and sighs when you raise your hand. It's you again.
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Didn't we cover this already?
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But that's not the God that James describes. He describes a heavenly Father who's glad you came to him.
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You can come back with the same question for the 30th time today.
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And God's never going to roll his eyes.
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And then a little further down in verse 17, he says, Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. I just love that. Think about how a shadow moves through the day. Morning shadows stretch one way, afternoon do another. And there's always a shifting. But God doesn't shift. Your circumstances might change by the hour, but the character of your heavenly Father doesn't.
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He was good yesterday, he's good this morning, and he'll still be good when the storm is over.
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So where does that leave us today?
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Maybe you're in a windy season right now, and it's blowing pretty hard and you're bent sideways and you're not sure if you're going to be able to stand back up.
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If that's you, I want to give you three simple things to carry into your day. First, name what's hard. Don't pretend.
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God already knows. And James never asks you to fake it till you make it. Second, ask for wisdom. Just ask out loud in your car or truck, or quietly at your desk. Lord, I don't know what to do here. Would you give me some wisdom? He's generous and he won't scold you for asking him.
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Third, let it grow.
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Instead of only asking, when's this going to be over? Try asking, Lord, what are you building in me?
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Maybe it's patience. Maybe it's compassion for someone who's hurting. Maybe it's a deeper trust than you ever had. Just remember that tomato plant. The wind didn't destroy it, it strengthened it. And the same God who designed a plant to grow stronger in the storm is a work in your life today. And while he's at work in your life today, remember, he hasn't changed and he hasn't left.
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So let it grow, my friend. I'm Chuck Allen, and thanks for spending a few minutes with me today on this weekday podcast.
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Now, go live this day with a little more courage, and I'll chat with you again tomorrow. God bless you. Bye now.