God Builds Character: This Season Is Shaping You
The Christian Professional Journal is here to offer faith-based insights and encouragement to help you navigate work and life with purpose. Together, we’ll explore how to keep Faith First, Excellence Always, as we grow and walk boldly in God’s calling.
“So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.” Galatians 6:9
We often ask God to open doors, but rarely do we ask Him to build the character and strength to walk through them well.
Romans 5:3–4 says: “We also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.”
Paul is pointing to the holy refinement that begins with suffering, leads through perseverance, and culminates in a kind of tested, resilient character that overflows in hope. God builds character in us through the very circumstances we would often choose to avoid.
The Greek term for “character” here (dokimē) speaks of something that has been proven, refined, and found genuine. This is the deep integrity of a soul that has remained under pressure and emerged still standing.
That formation begins with suffering, which God uses to produce perseverance (hypomonē). A spiritual endurance that chooses to remain faithful under fire. And as perseverance is repeated, practiced, and sustained, God forges within us a character that is not easily shaken.
Only then does Paul speak of hope, because the kind of hope that emerges from tested character doesn’t waver. It anchors us in the faithfulness of God. We begin to trust not only what God can do, but who He is, because we’ve seen Him work in us, not just around us.
God builds character through seasons, through endurance, and often in silence. And when He is finished, what emerges is someone who is ready, refined, and rooted in His truth.
Let’s look at two people who knew what it meant to be reshaped by God: Esther and Peter.
Esther: Character Shaped in the Hidden Place
Before Esther ever stood in the king’s court, before she ever spoke the words “If I perish, I perish,” she spent years in obscurity.
She was an orphan, raised by her cousin Mordecai in exile. She had no pedigree of greatness. No one would’ve said to her, She’s the one God will use to save a nation. But God did.
In Esther 2, we read that she was taken into the king’s palace as one of many women. Yet she didn’t rush into influence. She underwent twelve months of preparation, six months with oil of myrrh, and six with perfumes and cosmetics.
Esther submitted to this process. She didn’t fight to be seen. She didn’t manipulate her way to the top. She was quietly obedient and internally transformed.
And when the moment came, when the fate of her people hung in the balance. She didn’t speak from ambition or fear. She spoke from a character shaped in surrender.
“And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?” Esther 4:14
Peter: Character Shaped by Failure and Restoration
Then we come to Peter. Fiery, impulsive, bold. He was the first to walk on water… and the first to sink. The first to confess Jesus as Messiah… and the first to deny Him three times.
But here’s what’s so powerful about Peter’s story: Jesus never gave up on him.
In Luke 22:31–32, Jesus says: “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”
Peter would fall but Jesus knew he would return stronger. His failure wasn’t the end, it was the furnace. And when the risen Christ restored Peter in John 21, He didn’t shame him. He asked one question three times: “Do you love Me?”
Peter’s character was rebuilt on love.
And that same Peter, once fearful, stood in Acts 2 and preached with power. His character was anchored. Redeemed. Tested. True.
What God Builds in You Before He Works Through You
Esther and Peter both faced a moment of truth: Would they cling to comfort, or step into calling?
What determined their response was the character God had formed in them.
Esther’s character was formed in the quiet waiting.
Peter’s character was forged through public failure and private restoration.
And so is yours. God is establishing you. He is pruning what won’t bear fruit and shaping what will endure.
Making Sense of the Season
One of the hardest things in the life of faith is understanding His timing. You may find yourself asking:
Why is this door still closed?
Why am I being hidden when I feel ready?
Why does it feel like God is silent when I’m seeking Him?
And just because the season feels slow or stretching doesn’t mean it’s wasted. Often, it’s the season where God is doing His most important work in you.
Ecclesiastes 3:1 says: “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens.”
That includes pruning. Preparation. Refinement. Just as a farmer does not harvest in winter, God does not promote before He prepares.
If you’re in a season of hiddenness, it may be because He’s protecting you. If you’re in a season of stretching, it may be because He’s enlarging your capacity and strengthening your character. If you’re in a season of silence, it may be because He’s teaching you to walk by faith.
Remember Esther. Twelve months of preparation for one divine moment. Remember Peter. One devastating fall that led to a ministry rooted in humility.
Three Truths About Character Building:
It’s slow and sacred. God will not rush what eternity depends on.
It happens in the hidden places. Like roots before fruit, you’re being grounded before being made visible.
It leads to real authority. Kingdom weight that lasts.
A Prayer for This Week:
“Lord, do the deeper work in me.
Shape me when no one’s looking.
Build in me what can carry Your Spirit with honor.
I surrender to Your pace, Your process, and Your purpose.”
Sin the Great Joker is a call to that kind of refining. If you feel the stirring of God building something deeper in you… this book was written for you.
Gift yourself a copy of the book today and press forward in faith.
Leave a meaningful and heartfelt review on Amazon, if you’ve read and enjoyed the book. Your words might lead someone else to say yes to Jesus.
Character comes before calling. Holiness before harvest.
Help Spread the Word
Share with Friends, give the Gift of Faith and if you loved the book, please consider giving it a heartfelt and thoughtful review. Your feedback helps others discover the book and its message of hope and faith. www.sinthegreatjoker.com
Praying His peace and blessings abound in your life.
