Testing! Final exams! Pop quiz! Do those words bring back bad memories of school days when you were facing tests at various intervals – some known and some “surprise” ones?
Does for me.
And who hasn’t observed a toddler who was told not to touch something that was “hot” or forbidden? As soon as the attention of adults goes elsewhere, out ventures the chubby little hand inching over to the “no touch” item. Slowly reaching out to test out that “no” command.
Yep, we are tested – and we are testers. And we just HAVE TO find out for ourselves – how independent can we be? What are the real answers…and can we get by with doing it our way?
Oh, those poor Israelites, wandering around in the desert for 40 years – really? Why? And how does that impact my life?
My favorite devotional writer, Henry Blackaby, brings up this annoying answer in a scripture:
The LORD your God led you on the entire journey these 40 years in the wilderness, so that He might humble you and test you to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep His commands. – Deuteronomy 8:2
I smugly think “Boy, were they slow to figure this out!” Which implies I would never have taken that route or been so blind.…oh yeah?
Blackaby’s wisdom was that God allows us to suffer difficulties and hardships for a purpose.
My response to difficulties and hardships in my life? — Hey, what did I do wrong? Why am I getting punished? How long is this going to last? I’ve got to get this turned around!
Back to those Israelites – Blackaby says that when they refused to obey God and enter the Promised Land, they revealed that they did not really know Him. If they had, they would have had more faith.
He says God spent the next 40 years testing the hearts of His people to see if they were prepared for His next assignment.
So this kind of test does not pop back quickly to give us a grade with a letter or number that tells us how we did. This kind of test takes longer, has no clear x-ray vision of what is happening inside us, and gives no clear indication of how hard it is going to be or how long it will last.
Testing, says Blackaby, reveals what is in your heart and produces a robust faith. (see James 1:3, 12) Okay, I want that result, but I cringe at what it is going to take to get there.
God allowed the Israelites to hunger so they could experience His provision and develop a deeper level of trust in Him. They came to understand that their lives depended upon His Word – it was the most important thing – and they had to do that for forty years while living in the desert.
But as they walked with God, they listened and believed. And when they finally entered the Promised Land and waged war against their enemies, they saw God lead them to an astounding victory. Not instantly, not without effort, including the hardship of war, but they knew that depending on His Word and Him meant life and death.
It makes me think about that part of my Life-Story course where I guide students to focus on how they have walked on this earth, what led them and what they came to understand about the life they have lived so far. A big question to answer in one’s Life-Story is “what has testing in your life revealed in your heart?” and “what did it produce within you in regard to where you place your faith?”
It also brings to mind the “toddler testing” I referenced above. That sinful nature we have residing within and ready to jump into action. As I reflect on my Life-Story overarching theme and lessons, when did I put out that adventurous finger to touch the “no” item? Where was I, what was I doing, and what drove me to follow the rebellious path? And what did I learn from it?
Maybe it is even more current in my life. Blackaby’s challenge really gripped me – he asked a few tough questions. “Is God presently testing you in some area of your life? What has His testing revealed?”
Probably just as important would be my responses to His last questions. “Have you become bitter toward God because of where He has led you? Or have you come to trust Him more as a result of what you have gone through?”
Great “insight” work to be done – looking back at our past and doing a heart check in the immediate present life. Brings to mind Psalm 46:10:
Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.
Call to action? Be still, reflect on the testing (hardships and difficulties), and write out (spontaneously—just let it flow – or speak it into a recorder) a time of testing, now or in the past, and what is being revealed, questioned, learned as you remember and record it.
Yep – double-dog dare you to do this! (please)
May you be blessed.
