Few Christians have ever had it as easy as the believers in America have had it over the last 250 years. Because we have lived out our faith in a nation that has historically favored Christ, His good news, and His people, the American Church has grown accustomed to enjoying easy faith. Those times of national ease are already fading, and as we approach the end of the age, they will eventually give place to the type of Christianity that has been lived out in other parts of the globe for the last 2,000 years. It will be comparatively far more difficult than any of us have experienced as we follow Christ. How can we prepare now for what must come? The Apostle James trains us in how to handle troubled waters in our own individual lives. His counsel will ready us and steady us so that we finish our races for the glory of Jesus. We will cross the finish line faithful, fervent, and filled. We will not be casualties of the spiritual war raging against us. We will enter into the presence of our King to receive the rewards He has prepared for us. But we must be prepared ahead of time, and the words of James will help us.