With human tests the key is knowing all the answers but with God's test the key
is not knowing all the answers with God's test the key is trusting God to know the answer
You've got to trust God in the testing now in the Bible a test is a trial that purifies and prepares
the heart a test is a trial used by God to purify and prepare the heart you are being tested
always you're being prepared you're being purified we're always being shaped again if you fail to see
this then you'll interpret the challenges of your life as random issues that you just want to avoid
you'll try to avoid any challenge now nobody gets excited about tests but if you understand
that you serve a master weaver who's going to weave all of this together you will be able to
discover that there is purpose in the troubles that come your way for 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 God's goal on earth is not to make you happy God's
goal on your life is to grow you up the spiritual maturity happiness comes from holiness and and
in heaven you're going to be happy for trillions and trillions of years this is the growing stage
this is the development stage not everything works perfectly and not everything goes the way you want
it to go because God is much more interested in your character than he is your comfort
Now one of the ways one of the ways that God grows you up is by testing you you know when
you work out in a gym you you test your muscles by lifting weights and the more weight you can lift
uh the more it tests your muscle the more it grows your muscle and God builds your character the same
way through a series of tests and those tests test your faith they test your character they test your
patients they test all kinds of things in your life now the good news behind that is that there's
a purpose behind every problem in your life problems are not simply arbitrary prior problems
are not simply by chance the problems that come into your life are there to test your character
to grow your character to grow your faith to help you become all that God wants you to be the man
God wants you to be the woman God wants you to be so every problem has a purpose and it's designed
to help you grow when God puts you to the test and you pass the test and he blesses you watch
this carefully he's not coming back with a less struggle the only way he's going to get your faith
at this to keep pushing he tests you here and what happens the next time the test is stronger
and stronger and stronger and stronger because what's happening is it's like lifting weights you
start with two pounds then you go to five then you go to 10 then you go to 20 whatever it might be
you're getting stronger in your physical body when you extend the amount of weights
when you and I faithfully go through some tests some trial and we come through it we can thank
God for it but look don't relax because there's another one coming he's not going to let you
allow you to stay where you are unless you push against it push against and push against them
and refuse to submit to the test the test could be financial it could be in your relationships to
people it could be with your job whatever it might be whatever it is remember this that God's for you
he says he's working all things listen for our good if we trust him and rely upon him
one of his children and so whatever the test is it's for our good we don't like them
sometimes because they're costly sometimes they demand things of us that we don't
necessarily want to yield but if we want to grow and accomplish his purpose in our life we must
trust him so God has a will and a purpose and a plan for your life and the reason he wants to grow
your faith is because he knows the greater your degree of trust in him the more he's going to be
able to watch this do through you in you and for you as well as for the kingdom of God that's why
it's so very important that you and I learned to trust him and to walk obediently before him
Trust God during these times of testing God has not forgotten you
God has not forgotten you do not interpret this time of testing as the absence of God just the
opposite the old testament word for test comes from a Hebrew word that means to take a keen look
at to choose to take a keen look at to choose so if you're being tested it is because God is
looking at you he is choosing to prepare you for something in the future but sometimes in the test
the teacher is silent you don't hear anything you don't see anything improving but you have to know
in the dark moments God still has you in the palm of his hand he knows it's difficult he
knows you feel overwhelmed he knows you don't think you can go on don't worry
help is on the way weeping endures for a night but joy is coming in the morning
now keep standing one day at a time don't worry about tomorrow you don't have grace for tomorrow
stand today and when you get to tomorrow you'll have grace for that day
God is fully engaged he sees the needs of tomorrow and accordingly prepares the test of today
He sees the needs of tomorrow and accordingly he prepares the test
of today how are you being tested how are you being tested are you being tested emotionally
are you being tested physically is your patients being developed perhaps a good question for you to
ask your heavenly father is Lord what's this test for or how am I being tested and perhaps you can
even say thank you Lord consider it all joy the scripture says when you passed through various
types of trials you consider thank you Lord that you would consider me worthy of this test
but you press into the test of today you trust God in a season of testing and one more
you trust God for the timing you may be in this test right now
the when test where you've been waiting for an answer and it doesn't seem like there's any end
in sight you're going when when Lord when are you going to take care of this problem
when are you going to take care of this issue when are you going to take care of this relationship
when are you going to take care of my finances when are you going to take care
of my health when are you going to take care of my future and he was going when Lord when
faith is waiting for God's timing without knowing when some of you been waiting long time
for your prayer to be answered waiting a long time to be pregnant waiting a long time to be married
waiting a long time for that boss to be fired waiting a long time just be patient trust God
for the timing God is always at work God is always at work for the good of everyone who loves him
our call is simply to wait while God works you just keep trusting God in the testing you just
keep trusting God in the timing to be sure Joseph would be the first to tell you life in the pit
stinks it does but for all of its rottenness it brings one beautiful blessing
when you're down in the pit there's only one way to look and that's up you keep looking up
and the same God who reached in to rescue Joseph is the God who will reach in to rescue you
It may be taken longer than you thought you were determined at first you stood strong but now it's
been a long time you're tired thoughts are telling you it's never going to work out you'll never
get well never see your family restored don't believe those lies that test is not permanent
God has already set an end to the difficulty you have to get your second wind God didn't bring
you this far to leave you what he started he's going to finish dig down deep and keep passing
the test keep thanking him that it's on the way keep declaring what he promised keep believing
when you don't see any sign of it stay in this attitude of faith faith is waiting on God's timing
without knowing when faith is expecting a miracle without knowing how faith is trusting God's
purpose without knowing why faith is continuing to persist without knowing how long this is a test