Day 5: Essays and Final Tests

One thing that students don’t like to hear about a test is that it will be over everything. Essay tests take more study and require lengthy hand-written answers to show the student’s understanding of the main themes presented in a course.

An essay test in life is the message that our life bears throughout all our days, so it’s over everything. We are always adding to it in each chapter of our lives. The signs of a person’s life message or calling can happen early in life. We see this in Scripture in multiple places.

Joseph, as a young boy, had several dreams that suggested he would be in authority over his family. God often gives us glimmers of our life’s calling early in our lives.

What message about God do people see when they look at your life story? Is it His faithfulness? His incredible redemption? The possibilities are limitless.

When the inklings of our life’s theme begin to show up in our lives, and we begin to get a sense of God’s calling for us, it’s not uncommon for it to seem too big or scary or for it to be rejected either by us or by those close to us. But a seed has been planted in our hearts.

The area of our promise or gifting is a place the enemy often challenges or attacks. He hates God’s story for you.

We can see this in the story of Joseph walking into his leadership calling. Joseph had dreams that he shared with his family. This and the favoritism of his father caused his brothers to sell him into slavery. But Joseph rose to leadership in the household of his owner, Potiphar.

Joseph was wrongly accused of rape and thrown into prison where he rose to leadership.

He’s forgotten in prison for years but finally is released because of his ability to interpret Pharaoh’s dream. This causes him to rise to leadership – second in command over Egypt.

It’s easy to see the theme of leadership and godly oversight in Joseph’s life. Because of the difficult situations he went through getting there, it’s easy to imagine that he might have struggled with discouraging lies and places of bitterness.

Maybe he struggled with thoughts like, “Who do you think you are? You’re not a leader. You’re a loser. No one wants you. You’re stuck going nowhere. You’ll never get a break. Your family has kept you from making your mark.”

If you know Joseph’s story, you know the opposite is true. The wrongful situations Joseph endured served to perfect his gift and character so that he could accomplish what God had called him to do.

The fruit of an essay test is the confidence in the calling and testimony that God has called you to live out.

Final (Ultimate) Test

After walking in our calling for some time, we will encounter the ultimate test, which challenges how we will use the authority and gifts we’ve been given.

Luke 12:48 says “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded.”

Our gifts and callings bring with them the power to influence and impact others. That power can be misused. We see that regularly in the lives of men and women leaders who fall due to moral failure.

Let’s go back to Joseph’s story. His brothers, who had sold him into slavery, eventually came to Egypt in need of food, and they didn’t recognize Joseph. Joseph’s earthly authority would have allowed him to kill his brothers or refuse their plea for help.

Instead, by forgiving them and helping them, he became a part of God’s redemption story for an entire nation.

The ultimate test asks us how we will use the authority God has given us and ultimately asks us to surrender it back to God.

All tests are designed to lead us closer to God and the redemptive story he’s written just for us. That discovery is so powerful that it’s worth surrendering everything we gain along our life’s path.

Where are you? Can you see yourself in any of these tests? What invitation is God giving you? Is there anything He’s asking you to give to him?