Does God test people?  Does God allow people to be tested?  Should we test people?  If so, how, and what do we mean by it?

These are questions that have being rolling around my brain a bit recently, in response to various things that are happening or are being said by various people I meet.

The key is, I suspect, what we mean by 'testing.'  Many, maybe most, people equate 'test' with 'exam' and with pass/fail.  There is a mind of headmaster view of God who sets hard tests to see if our faith is kosher or not.  If we pass the test - endure hardship with a cheesy grin, pray faithfully, whatever it is, we are 'in'; if we don't then presumably we are 'out.'  Not the most helpful view of God who is Love.

A friend's daughter who is 21 and has just qaulifed as a nurse offers a much more helpful image, I'd like to suggest.  She has observed how patients are assessed (tested) before they leave hospital to see if they are adequately ready to go home - not perfect but good enough.  The intent is not pass/fail but to prevent futher injury or illness because a person is not yet equipped for discharge.  Thus, for example, the physio will check they can walk up stairs, the OT will ensure they can prepare a meal,  a social worker may check for support mechanisms.  If a person is not yet ready, then plans can be put in place to give the support needed to develop the strength or skills needed.  Maybe it is semantics, but this to me seems a more positive understanding of testing.

So does God test people?  If we mean set pass/fail tasks I'm not convinced.  Does God allow testing situations to arise - well, yes, experience shows me this is so.  In Evan Almighty God said something that seemed to fit with this view.

Should we test people?  People who feel they have a call from God?  Poeple who offer to serve in some way?  If by that we mean setting them up a pass/fail task, I'd suggest not.  But if we can see it as working with them to explore whether they are at this point ready enough for a role or responsibility then I think that, yes, we should.

As I type this, I am reminded of the 'Sheepdog trials' sermon quoted in Susan Howatch's novel The High Flyer which attempts something similar in thinking about God's judgement.