Search me God and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me and lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139:23-24

 

What comes to mind when you think about tests? Stress, anxiety, fear, sweaty palms, headaches? Most of us don’t enjoy tests because they reveal things about our abilities and our character. They also demonstrate our preparedness and whether or not we have “the right stuff.”

 

There is also something about trials that strip away unwanted elements in our lives. We speak of the trial by fire that destroys all that is merely temporal and leaves that which is everlasting. There is the heat of the furnace that removes the impurities and leaves only that which is pure. Daniel’s trial of trusting God when surrounded by hungry lions speaks to God’s role in the dangerous times of our lives.

 

Most of us don’t have to face real lions or a literal furnace of fire in our lives. But we do encounter a battery of tests, don’t we? School tests to prove our readiness for next level learning, tests of character when tempted by deceit, anger, envy, or any number of unwholesome traits. And most of us don’t relish the idea of tests. The preparation for them is often painful and stressful. The results are sometimes embarrassing if we are, after being weighed and measured, ‘found wanting’.

 

David displayed such confidence that he actually invited God to ‘test’ him. “Test me, Lord, and try me, examine my heart and my mind.” Psalm 26:2 He took confidence in his submission to God and God’s faithfulness to see him through the testing situation. Later in life, he had to repent of all self-confidence and again asked God to search his heart and reveal any impure thoughts or deeds.

 

As life progresses, the tests become more challenging and many of them quite outside our area of expertise. Some are completely outside of any ability or hope we might have in any of our natural abilities. But, if we have maintained a clear conscience before God, we can stand in the confidence of His promises and His grace to see us through the most severe life tests. It is out of humility, not boasting, that we invite God to test us, search us, reveal in us any unworthy thoughts and deeds, so we can submit them to him. And then, in faith, to stand firm and hold fast to God’s promises in the middle of our tests and trials.

 

Search me O God, know my anxious thoughts. Lead me in your way.