“Tribulation Brings About Perseverance”: Trials and Resilience

Neither Paul nor James is asking believers to enjoy suffering. Both describe a process. Tribulation, endured, produces something: perseverance, then tested character, then hope. James calls it “testing,” the word used for proving metal in fire. The joy is in what trials produce, and in God who is at work in them (Rom. 8:28). These texts were written to churches facing real persecution, not minor inconvenience.

Some adversity, not none. Seery, Holman, and Silver (2010) followed a national sample for several years and counted how many serious adverse events each person had faced in life, such as illness, bereavement, violence, or disaster. People with a history of some adversity had better mental health and well-being than those with a lot of it, and also better than those with none. They reported less distress, less impairment, fewer post-traumatic symptoms, and higher life satisfaction. They were also the least shaken when new adversity came. The relationship was U-shaped: moderate adversity looked like a training ground.

How you read stress changes the stress. Crum, Salovey, and Achor (2013) found that people differ in whether they see stress as enhancing or debilitating, and that a short video could shift this mindset. Those with a “stress is enhancing” view showed moderate cortisol responses under stress and more desire for feedback. In a randomized experiment, Jamieson, Nock, and Mendes (2012) told some participants before a stressful speech that their racing heart was helping them perform. Compared with controls, they showed more efficient cardiovascular responses and paid less attention to threatening information. Reappraisal of this kind, changing what a situation means, has a consistent brain signature, as the paper describes in Section 3 (Buhle et al., 2014).

What the studies cannot tell us. The U-shaped curve does not mean heavy trauma is good for anyone. People with the most adversity did worst. Mindset studies are short-term and lab-based. And Paul’s hope rests on God’s love “poured out within our hearts” (Rom. 5:5), not on a reframing technique. The convergence is with the shape of the text. Hardship that is endured and understood rightly tends to leave people stronger, not weaker.

Practice

Living it out

Five practices drawn from this passage. Each says how strong the research behind it is. What the labels mean.

1. 1

   Name what a past trial produced

   Write down one hard season and what it built in you, such as patience, compassion, or dependence on God.

   ModerateSome lifetime adversity predicted greater resilience to later hardship (Seery et al., 2010). Reflecting on past trials was not tested.
2. 2

   Reread your body’s stress signals

   Before a hard task, tell yourself, “This racing heart is my body getting ready.”

   ModerateReappraising arousal improved cardiovascular responses in a randomized experiment (Jamieson et al., 2012).
3. 3

   Ask “what is this producing?” not only “why me?”

   In a trial, ask what perseverance or character God may be building.

   StrongStrong that reappraisal reliably changes emotional responses (Buhle et al., 2014, cited in the paper). The theological question is commended by Scripture (James 1:2–4).
4. 4

   Don’t wish your children a trouble-free life

   Let them face age-appropriate hardship, and walk with them through it.

   EarlyEarly, by inference. Moderate adversity predicted resilience in adults (Seery et al., 2010). Children were not studied.
5. 5

   Know the difference between a trial and trauma

   If a hardship has overwhelmed you, with nightmares, numbness, or constant fear, get help from a counselor.

   StrongStrong that high levels of adversity predict worse outcomes (Seery et al., 2010).

Studies cited on this page4

1. ↗ Buhle, J. T., Silvers, J. A., Wager, T. D., Lopez, R., Onyemekwu, C., Kober, H., Weber, J., & Ochsner, K. N. (2014). Cognitive reappraisal of emotion: A meta-analysis of human neuroimaging studies. Cerebral Cortex, 24(11), 2981–2990. https://doi.org/10.1093/cercor/bht154
2. ↗ Crum, A. J., Salovey, P., & Achor, S. (2013). Rethinking stress: The role of mindsets in determining the stress response. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 104(4), 716–733. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0031201
3. ↗ Jamieson, J. P., Nock, M. K., & Mendes, W. B. (2012). Mind over matter: Reappraising arousal improves cardiovascular and cognitive responses to stress. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 141(3), 417–422. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025719
4. ↗ Seery, M. D., Holman, E. A., & Silver, R. C. (2010). Whatever does not kill us: Cumulative lifetime adversity, vulnerability, and resilience. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 99(6), 1025–1041. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0021344