James Chapter 1:

So for part of my school this week I have to go through the book of James and write a summary on each chapter, well that’s a summary of what I have to do. I have been reading through James since my dad told me what I had to do, and well, James was one of those guys who gave it to you straight up with no sugar coatings. He didn’t care if it was “Good, bad or mediocre.” He was just going to slap it onto you. (Some of you will get that.) So here is Chapter 1 summary:
Verse 2: Consider it joy, my brothers, whenever you face trails of any kind, 3 because you know that testing of you faith develops perseverance.
Now for me perseverance comes easily, but in the NKJ version which is what I use (for this paper I am using the KJ version,) it says patience. I am not very patient; I have always been fast to the point and go! This is why I have a small attention span, I find it hard to concentrate on reading or listening to something for a long time, now writing is a different story. So when James is saying that trails will in turn give you patience or perseverance; I’m all for it. So, when I look for other references in the Bible about trails you get several other things.
Romans 5:3. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because suffering produces perseverance, perseverance character, and character hope.
Hope, humans in general rely on hope, whatever they have hope in that’s why they keep going. Christians need hope, hope in Christ. Jesus tells his disciples that following him will just get harder; it’s not going to be sitting in a palace with all the luxuries you can imagine. It will be hard work, being tempted to stray at every corner. But, we need to know where that comes from.
James 1:13. When tempted, no one should say: “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone, 14but each one is tempted by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed.
Evil desire…… So I have thought about it and this is what I have thought about people: “Everyone at one point in their lives wants to be a hero, no matter how mean or whatever they are now.” I also have noticed this: That when people want to be a hero for instance, they may have good intentions at first. Then the selfishness sets in, they start thinking: “Imagine the fame that comes with saving lives, the money and all of the attention.” That’s the evil desire, what’s so bad about raking in the profit after saving a life? Well, you don’t deserve it if you only saved the life for the money. You need to be humble, give credit to God because you had very little to do with it. Maybe you are good at a sport or something; well that’s called a gift, sometimes called skill. Guess what, God gave you that “skill or talent.” You didn’t earn it! Not to be mean, but I don’t think any human can earn any gift from God. We are too selfish.
Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the father of heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. James 1:17.
And to close this summary I think this is perfect.
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man, who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, walks away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But the man who looks intently on the law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it – he will be blessed in what he does.

Jack,