Note the interconnectedness of this verse. Jesus readily admits that we will face affliction while on this earth but in the same breath reminds us that we should take heart because He has overcome the world thus through Jesus and in Jesus we can have the peace we always so desperately seek. Our peace is also so fleeting though isn't it? Just like our joy can disappear like a vapor our peace is apparently also for sale sometimes to the enemy. A time of testing comes; a time of trial. This is an opportunity to strengthen our faith as James explains:
Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. James 1: 2-4
Instead, we turn the opportunity for joy into a chance for the enemy to steal our peace. He will whisper into our ears how God has abandoned us or make us question how God can allow such tribulation into our lives. We can allow our affliction to become bigger than our God. In Mark, Chapter 9, we see the father of the demon possessed child. He admits that his child has suffered for since he was small, indicating that this affliction had gone on for many years. He weakly asks Jesus for pity and to help him, "if you can." The response from Jesus reminds us that the enemy will always get us to focus on the symptom instead of the problem:
"What do you mean, 'If I can'?" Jesus asked. "Anything is possible if a person believes." Mark 9: 23 (NLT)
The affliction this father had to endure had sapped his belief in the power that God possessed. He had lost his patience in the affliction. Contrast that with the story about the woman with the issue of blood. This was another long suffering situation as she had suffered for 12 years and the Bible tells us that she had spent everything she had under the care of many doctors only to grow worse. Yet her patience remained, her faith strengthened to the point that she knew what she needed for deliverance:
For she kept saying to herself, If I only touch His garment, I shall be restored to health. Matthew 9: 21 (AMP)
What do we keep saying to ourselves in the midst of our storms? Has our patience run its course? Who are we listening to? Romans 12:12 implores us to remain patient in our affliction because Jesus has already overcome the world and through Him, we can too. This life is a vapor as the Bible describes it and we already are living the eternal life with the promise of heaven yet to come. Our patience strengthens our faith. Our faith pleases God because it shows that we will not focus on our problems but rather on our problem solver.
Lastly, our key verse states the key to remaining joyful and hope and patient in affliction. We must remain faithful in prayer. Prayer is the vital element we need in our walk if we are to remain at peace and joyful. It is also part of God's will for our lives:
