"Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him."

Only Christians succeed in life. That's because death, which is our greatest enemy, is something that none of us as humans can stop. But if we persevere, we achieve the greatest success: a life that never expires because it is in the hands of the One who overcame death!

I don't know about you, but I find it hard to understand why we have to go through difficult things. In fact, life's problems are just hard to deal with. This is especially true when they are happening. But as Christians who believe in Jesus, we have some important spiritual reasons to keep going through hard times. God's promise to give us the crown of life that can't be taken away is one of the best reasons to keep going when things are hard spiritually.

This blessing comes from the brother of Jesus. He had done it himself, not just taught about it. When his faith was being attacked, James knew it was important to "hang in" and "hang on." He told us that God loves us and that God has given us amazing promises about the future. He knew that the hard times we were going through would eventually turn into times of great blessing. James wants us to know that God wants us to be healthy and happy. That's why He sent Jesus, after all (refer to John 10:10).

In life, only Christians win. That's because none of us humans have the power to stop death, which is our biggest enemy. But if we keep going, we get the ultimate victory: a life that will never end because our lives are in the hands of the One who defeated death!