Take Your Pencils Out

Alright, ladies and gentlemen it’s test time.  Take out your pencils.  Write your name in the upper right-hand corner of your paper and write today’s date underneath your name.  Has everyone completed that task?  Let’s begin.

Anyone remember those days?  We followed our teacher’s instructions and filled out all the easy information.  We know our names and the date (most of the time…LOL).  But the test…Some of us dreaded the test.  We had studied feverishly and just wanted to make sure that we got the right answers.  Others forgot all about the test and broke out in a nervous sweat.  Some were confident because the material was easy for them.  They didn’t have to study at all.

I’ve fallen into each of those categories at different points in my life.  I’m not talking about traditional school.  I’m talking about the school of life.  Life has a way of testing you to see what you’re made of.  We wake up everyday not knowing what the day will hold.  Sometimes, our biggest tests are scheduled for that day, and we are ill prepared.

Take the day that my uncle was murdered for example.  I knew that I was going to a Judah chorale concert that evening.  It was just another Saturday.  Until my mama got the call that changed my entire family.

Or every time I get paid.  I’m ready for the tithing test.  Pass it with flying colors.  But recently a bonus question has appeared on that test.  God is asking about my willingness to consistently give an offering.

How about the time my co-worker asked me to pray with her OUT LOUD… AT WORK?  Failed that one spectacularly.  I told her that she knew Jesus for herself.  *sigh*  I wasn’t ready!  I wasn’t prepared.  Why would she ask me to pray????

Life will test and challenge each of us and our faith.  I’m determined to be more prepared for the tests and pop quizzes that arise each day.  Let’s be practical.  How can I do this?  I have to spend time with God daily.  Whether it’s reading a single scripture or praying for 30 seconds as I wait for my car to warm up, I have to do it.  I need to start memorizing scripture so that when life hits, I have a deep well to draw from.  I’m praying for you and myself.  Our pencils can be sharp and ready to pass life’s tests.  #wepreach