Today’s Post Written By: Rae Lynn DeAngelis

“I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity.” (1 Chronicles 29:17a)

Have you ever noticed that when we ask for patience, God provides ample opportunities to practice the virtue? Likewise, it seems that when we pray for peace, chaos abounds.  Or when we pray for a humble heart, pride rears its ugly head again and again.

As the saying goes… be careful what you wish for!

When we pray for these virtues, God tests us to see if we really mean what we say.  These tests are not for His benefit – He already knows the outcome.  Rather, He tests us so that we can gauge progress and strengthen our resolve.

“In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions.” (Exodus 16:4)

It is easy to pray for change, but it’s a whole other story to actually make change happen. God seldom brings about change overnight. My experience has been that He slowly morphs our character into His over time.  Change is the result of test after test.

“Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.” (Deuteronomy 8:2)

Do you remember taking the SATs in high school? You could take the test as many times as you wanted, as long as you were willing to invest the time and energy necessary to prepare.  By taking the SAT over and over, you could learn from your mistakes and improve your score for the next time.

With each of God’s tests, we can do the same.  We can see where we have made mistakes, so we can change our response for the future.  God wants nothing less than our very best.

“But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.” (Job 23:10)

Consider the refining process of precious metals, and the manner in which the refiner turns up the heat, causing the impurities of the metal to surface. At the surface, the unwanted fragments are more easily skimmed away. In much the same way, with each heated test we face in life, sin rises to the surface so God can skim it away. And like purified gold, we will more clearly reflect our Refiner.

“This third I will bring into the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. They will call on my name and I will answer them; I will say, ‘They are my people,’ and they will say, ‘The LORD is our God.’” (Zechariah 13:9)

We need to keep taking God’s tests until we pass with flying colors.

After all… practice makes perfect!