Everyone can change for the better. However, it is only through challenges, and our proper responses to them, that changes come.

We must also intentionally challenge whatever area of life we want to see change in – whether its spiritual, mental, physical, relational, or financial.

This law is scientifically observed in our physical realm. For example, because of challenges:

• Plants in nature change for the better. Environmental stressors like wind and rain cause them to release certain chemicals that increase their resiliency, health, and lifespan. Because of this law, wild blueberries produce twice the antioxidants as cultivated ones.

• Peoples’ bodies change for the better. When we challenge our bodies with various stressors like exercise, cold/hot water therapy, or time restricted eating, our health inevitability improves. Because of this law, after we challenge our muscle tissues with weights and adequate rest, they change and grow. However, both comfort and challenge can hurt us. The key lies in the right dosage, duration, and frequency of challenges and rest periods to maximize this law’s benefits.

• Peoples’ brains change for the better. That’s right. We can improve our cognitive capacities. Scientists call this neuroplasticity – the brain’s ability to change and adapt in structure and function in response to challenges like learning something new. Because of this law, we can literally rewire our brains.

But did you know that God also put this law in the spiritual realm for our benefit?

Through challenges, God’s children can and do spiritually change for the better.

What do spiritual challenges look like? How can we leverage them to change and mature in the Lord?

Challenges = Trials

The biblical term for challenges is trials. Trials are tests of adversity – the wind, storms, and difficulties that God orchestrates to grow us up into spiritual maturity. Spiritual maturity to God is growing in the character and nature of Christ.  Often, we have a desire to grow spiritually but forgo the challenges needed to make it happen.

This changing through challenges principle is so important to the Lord that He had three separate New Testament authors teach on it:

From the Apostle Paul:

And not only this, but [with joy] let us exult in our sufferings and rejoice in our hardships, knowing that hardship (distress, pressure, trouble) produces patient endurance; and endurance, proven character (spiritual maturity); and proven character, hope and confident assurance [of eternal salvation]. – Romans 5:3

From the Apostle James:

Dear brothers and sisters,^[a] when troubles of any kind 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

From the Apostle Peter:

These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world. – 1 Peter 1:7

According to the Lord, we should receive His spiritual challenges (trials) with great joy. In other words, when He hands us a dumbbell, He wants us curling it with a smile on our face knowing the benefits that are being produced.

The main person of the Godhead that challenges us the Holy Spirit. While He is our comforter, He is also our challenger. 

The Bible says He was the one that led Jesus into the wilderness alone to be challenged for 40 days. Following temptations by Satan and a time of rest, Jesus then left the wilderness in the power of the Holy Spirit. This teaches us that not only do spiritual challenges produce growth, but they also produce higher levels of God’s power in and upon us when we respond to them correctly.

If Jesus, who was God in the flesh, required challenges to walk in God’s power, how much more do we as His children?

God is infinite creative in His ability and methods of challenging us.

What do challenges from God look like?

It seems from scripture we can distill down the various ways God challenges His children into three primary approaches. His challenges include disparities, distractions, or deterrents.

1. Disparity – A disparity is a sharp contrast or significant difference in something. When God engineers our immediate realities to look significantly different from His promises to us, we can be certain He is personally challenging us and our faith. For example:

• A disparity is Joseph sitting in a prison when God promised him leadership in Egypt.
• A disparity is Abraham on a mountain about to sacrifice his only son when God promised him more children than the stars in the sky.
• A disparity is David hiding in caves from Saul when God promised him to be King of Israel.
• A disparity could be you sitting alone in your house when God promised you a spouse.
• A disparity could be having an empty bank account when God promised you a job.

It’s easy to believe God in the moment. But what He really desires is a faith that is steadfast over time despite what our natural senses and realities are telling us. Afterall, faith is the “evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1).

For every word and promise we receive from God usually lies a challenge of disparity behind it.  Both Psalms 18:30 and Proverbs 30:5 tell us every word of God is tested.

When we get a revelation of God’s faithfulness to us, our faithfulness to Him and His Word becomes much easier to maintain.

2. Distractions – Distractions are challenges that attempt to get us off path or trade long term Kingdom benefits for short-term earthly gains. God will allow and even cause distractions to appear in front of us from time to time. Our response to His distractions is either a “yes, or no”. While in the moment our “yes” may immediately gratify our natural desires, in the long run it will cause us to forgo the change and growth God is after. When we say “no” to distractions, we change for the better. Note that God often does not directly tempt us with distractions, but often allows and uses the enemy to do so.

• A distraction is Esau saying “yes” to a bowl of lentil stew in front of him but losing his birthright by doing so.
• A distraction is Satan offering Jesus earthly power of kingdoms and Him saying “no” so He could continue to operate in true Kingdom power.
• A distraction is us saying “yes” to that new car deal with our entire paycheck instead of honoring God with the first of it.
• A distraction is us saying “yes” to that website for a moment of pleasure yet forgoing intimacy with our spouse and spiritually with the Lord.
• A distraction is Adam and Eve saying “yes” to the tree of knowledge and good and evil but losing their life in God and in His Kingdom. Why would God plant a tree of distraction in the same garden they worked in? Because He is after our growth, and we can only change and grow through challenges and saying “no” to distractions.

The more we exercise our “no” muscle to distraction challenges, the stronger we grow in faith and in the Father’s good purposes for us.

The third and final way God challenges us is through deterrents.

3. Deterrents – Deterrents are the opposite of distractions. Distractions are challenges for us to do something. Deterrents are challenges that keep us from doing something.

• A deterrent is Paul’s thorn in his flesh that was keeping him from growing His ministry. What was Jesus’ response? In essence, it was “I’m not removing it. This challenge will produce the change I’m wanting for you”.
• A deterrent is Paul getting knocked off his horse and being blind for three days.
• A deterrent is traffic that is keeping you from making that appointment on time but is designed to produced patience.

Disparities, distractions, and deterrents – each challenge us to grow in the Lord. If we leverage them wisely, we can be sure we will.

We can also impose challenges on ourselves to grow spiritually. Prayer and fasting are two ways to do it.

Let’s conclude:

Change in life comes through challenges. God put this law in both the physical and spiritual realm for our benefit. To grow, we should be engineering challenges into our lives each day. God also engineers them in without our help. When we take on His challenges with joy, we grow and mature in Christ.