Read James 1:2-4, 12. Everyone has the desire for success in life but not many have the

stick-to-itiveness to get there. What pushes people to success is perseverance but that only comes through times of testing. Tests prove that you are able to handle the next level, but testing usually causes much stress. In this James passage it says that testing produces perseverance and perseverance produces character. Character is only formed in the fire, and to succeed you must be willing to stick it out and not give up, give in, or take the easy way out.

• Name the places in your life you want to be successful. What will it take to accomplish this?


• How well do you do at tests in general? Do they stress you out? Why?

Read James 1:22 & James 2:17-18. Often times, God uses pain and trials to cause lifestyle change for the better. However, the want to change and get to the next level can’t be separated from work to fulfill it. People who are willing to work and persevere through trials and pain are also the ones who get to God’s place of promise!

• Describe something you have worked hard to accomplish or complete. How has that experience helped to build character in you?


• What fire is God using to form character in your life right now?

Read Matthew 4:1 & Deuteronomy 8:2-3. God also uses desert seasons in your life to purify you from duplicity in your commitment to God and to give you a single minded focus. Both the Israelites and the Jesus spent time in the desert and it was a time to solidify their dependence and relationship to God who had called them to great and greater purposes.

• Are you currently experiencing a desert season or been through one recently? How is God working to purify your devotion?


• Do you totally depend upon God only in your life? Which areas of life needs some work?

Re-Read James 1:12 & Acts 8:1, 4. God wants the best for you and your life, but God also wants you to complete the tasks and missions purposed for you. Sometimes when you get too comfortable you tend to stay where you are and forget about being the servant of Christ you were called to be. Followers of Jesus are never called to stop and quit or give in, but to persevere in faith and actions to be successful in all of God’s purposes. No one wants to be a failure in life but to function at the top of their game, leaving behind a living legacy as a follower of the living God.

• Are you in a comfortable place in your life right now? Where do you think God wants to move you too next?


• What is that next level in life that God is calling you to reach? How will you get there?


• What steps do you need to take to commit to persevering in your life goals and God-purposes?