Testing from the Father

Testing from the Father

Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.
Psalm 139:23 NIV

One of the things I have come to love about God is that He has searched me, He knows me and in spite of knowing me thoroughly, He is still committed to me. I can just imagine what the outcome would be if I told someone everything that popped into my mind, they would surely be disgusted. But the Lord sees me differently. He not only sees my condition, but He also sees where He will bring me. He sees me in a glorified state because of the blood of Christ.

Even though God is fully acquainted with us, He tests us. One might be tempted to think that if God knows us intimately, why does He need tests? But those tests are not for Him, they are for us. God uses the tests to show us our own condition. But even more so, He tests us to encourage growth (maturity). My thought is that these tests and trials are actually God’s classroom for life. And I think that God expects us to put that training to work. We put His lessons to work in how we manage our thoughts, how we care for our families, how we manage our finances, how we work and how we worship Him.

In a way, the testing we go through, even though it may be difficult, is a blessing. Think of the old axiom, “God loves me as I am. But He loves me too much to leave me the same.” God always corrects those He loves (Proverbs 3:12).