Tested, But Not Taken Out

Settle in

Take a deep breath. Turn off notifications on your phone. Ask God to help you embrace testing and grow stronger in your faith through it.

Thought starter

I served the Lord with tears and without pride. I served him when I was greatly tested … [20] You know that nothing has kept me from preaching whatever would help you. I have taught you in public and from house to house.

Acts 20:19-20 NIrV

Paul declared that nothing could stop him from preaching God’s Word—and he was tested in ways most of us can barely imagine! 

When life brings you tests and distractions, how do you respond? Do you let them derail you from God’s purpose for your life, or do you let them make you stronger and bring you closer to God?

Here’s what we’ll learn in this Quick Quiet Time:

• Everyone goes through testing. Our goal shouldn’t be avoiding hard times, but learning to grow through them.
• Jesus went through testing too. He understands us.
• Testing can help us if we let it.
• Testing is temporary, but God’s strength and protection are limitless.

… I have worked harder, been put in prison more often, been whipped times without number, and faced death again and again. [24] Five different times the Jewish leaders gave me thirty-nine lashes. [25] Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea. [26] I have traveled on many long journeys. I have faced danger from rivers and from robbers. I have faced danger from my own people, the Jews, as well as from the Gentiles. I have faced danger in the cities, in the deserts, and on the seas. And I have faced danger from men who claim to be believers but are not. [27] I have worked hard and long, enduring many sleepless nights. I have been hungry and thirsty and have often gone without food. I have shivered in the cold, without enough clothing to keep me warm.

2 Corinthians 11:23-27 NLT

2 Corinthians 11:23–27 shows us some of the physical testing Paul went through. In addition to that, he went through emotional and relational stress as a spiritual leader:

Then, besides all this, I have the daily burden of my concern for all the churches. [29] Who is weak without my feeling that weakness? Who is led astray, and I do not burn with anger? [30] If I must boast, I would rather boast about the things that show how weak I am. [31] God, the Father of our Lord Jesus, who is worthy of eternal praise, knows I am not lying.

2 Corinthians 11:28-31 NLT

The point: Paul wasn’t tested in theory—he was tested in blood, sweat, tears, danger, hurt, fear, exhaustion, and survival. And yet he kept going because of his love for God and his care for others. Tests did not defeat him, and they don’t have to defeat us either.

When Jesus returned from the Jordan River, the power of the Holy Spirit was with him, and the Spirit led him into the desert. [2] For forty days Jesus was tested by the devil …

Luke 4:1-2 CEV

After the devil had finished testing Jesus in every way possible, he left him for a while.

Luke 4:13 CEV

Since he himself has gone through suffering and testing, he is able to help us when we are being tested.

Hebrews 2:18 NLT

The point: We may be tested in our faith, but we are never abandoned in our testing. Because Jesus experienced testing and temptation from the devil, he can understand and help us through our own testing so we don’t give up. 

Testing can target physical, emotional, and spiritual areas of our lives, but we learn from Jesus’s experience that temptation will not last forever. Though testing comes and goes, God’s comfort and strengthening never leave us.

Friends, when life gets really difficult, don’t jump to the conclusion that God isn’t on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner.

1 Peter 4:12-13 MSG

My friends, don’t be surprised at the painful things that you are now suffering, which are testing your faith. Don’t think that something strange is happening to you.

1 Peter 4:12 ERV

The point: Being a Christian prepares us to handle the trials of life—it does not exempt us from them. But trials can lead to good things in our lives if we let God guide us through them. When we learn to rely on God, he produces strengths in us that we couldn’t sustain on our own—like love, joy, peace, kindness, patience, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). 

To learn more about the superpowers and strengths that could come from relying on God through hard times, read the study “Do Christians Have Superpowers?”

1. Tests build spiritual stamina.

My brothers and sisters, you will face all kinds of trouble. When you do, think of it as pure joy. [3] Your faith will be tested. You know that when this happens it will produce in you the strength to continue.

James 1:2-3 NIrV

Testing produces perseverance and spiritual stamina. Facing trouble does not mean God has abandoned us. God says that testing improves our ability to go on.  

Metaphor moment: Pressure is the gym where our faith and perseverance gain muscle. Without resistance, we can’t build strength. Just like muscles grow after time under tension, our faith grows when it is under pressure. 

Supportive note: Perseverance does not mean ignoring our capacity or limits until we burn out. Perseverance is about learning to lean on God’s power when our own energy hits zero. That’s what we learn to do when we go through testing.

2. Fire reveals what is real.

Your troubles have come in order to prove that your faith is real. Your faith is worth more than gold. That’s because gold can pass away even when fire has made it pure. Your faith is meant to bring praise, honor and glory to God. This will happen when Jesus Christ returns.

1 Peter 1:7 NIrV

Trials prove our faith is genuine. Difficulty exposes the real state of our faith, helping us see where we need to go to God for help. 

Metaphor moment: Trials refine our faith like fire purifies gold. The flames don’t destroy the gold — they get rid of what doesn’t belong so that what matters remains.

3.  Pressure clarifies purpose.

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. [4] And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation.

Romans 5:3-4 NLT

That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. [17] For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! [18] So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 NLT

Metaphor moment: Pressure is a lens. It sharpens what matters and blurs what doesn’t. Paul didn’t wait for comfort to serve God; he served through pressure and troubles. His eternal purpose became clearer because of pressure.

4. Private testing prepares public impact.

“If you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in large ones. But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest with greater responsibilities.”

Luke 16:10 NLT

Faithfulness in small, private tests builds capacity for greater public responsibility. Once we’ve faced trials for a little while, God will lift us up again, strengthening us and setting us firmly in place.

Metaphor moment: Roots grow underground before branches grow above ground. The unseen struggle supports the visible strength. The quiet places matter as much as the loud ones. 

5. Resistance grows deep roots.

And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.

1 Peter 5:10 NIV

Metaphor moment: Storms don’t last, but trees grow stronger because of them. Wind trains the roots to hold firm. In the Bible, Jesus’s disciples went through brutal storms—but their growth was unstoppable.

1. God equips and directs us in testing

He makes my feet like hinds’ feet [able to stand firmly and tread safely on paths of testing and trouble]; He sets me [securely] upon my high places.

Psalm 18:33 AMP

My son, do not reject or take lightly the discipline of the LORD [learn from your mistakes and the testing that comes from His correction through discipline]; Nor despise His rebuke.

Proverbs 3:11 AMP

God equips us with supernatural stability when life becomes unstable.

God’s testing can come through his loving discipline — it is not punishment, but training for maturity and responsibility.

2. Jesus helps us through our testing.

“Simon, stay on your toes. Satan has tried his best to separate all of you from me, like chaff from wheat. Simon, I’ve prayed for you in particular that you not give in or give out. When you have come through the time of testing, turn to your companions and give them a fresh start.”

Luke 22:31-32 MSG

Testing often seeks to separate us from Christ, but Jesus intercedes in prayer for us personally.

Simon Peter’s trial was not meant to destroy him, but to qualify him to serve and strengthen others. He went on to become a powerful leader in the early church who helped countless people.

God will strengthen us through our tests and work through us to strengthen others, just like he did through Simon Peter.

4. God is always protecting us.

He said: “I was naked when I was born, and I will be naked when I die. The LORD gave these things to me, and he has taken them away. Praise the name of the LORD.”

Job 1:21 NCV

God’s way is perfect. The LORD’s promise always proves to be true. He protects those who trust in him.

2 Samuel 22:31 ERV

Job was a man in the Bible who went through severe testing from the forces of darkness, but he did not lose his faith through his pain. We can learn a lot from his trusting attitude. Job 1:21 reminds us that everything we have is a gift from God, so we can still trust and worship him even when we lose things that matter to us. 

God promises to protect those who trust him. Even when he permits us to go through tough seasons, he puts strict limits on the influence of the forces of darkness (Job 1:12, Job 2:6).

This, then, is how you should pray: ‘Our Father in heaven: May your holy name be honored… [13] Do not bring us to hard testing, but keep us safe from the Evil One.’

Matthew 6:9,13 GNT

Jesus teaches us to ask for protection and shielding during trials. Testing may be unavoidable in a fallen world, but God’s protection, presence, and endurance are guaranteed.

Reflect: Looking back on your life, when was a moment you knew God was looking out for you, protecting you, or testing your faith? 

Let us look only to Jesus, the One who began our faith and who makes it perfect. He suffered death on the cross. But he accepted the shame as if it were nothing because of the joy that God put before him. And now he is sitting at the right side of God’s throne.

Hebrews 12:2 NCV

We are pushed hard from all sides. But we are not beaten down. We are bewildered. But that doesn’t make us lose hope. [9] Others make us suffer. But God does not desert us. We are knocked down. But we are not knocked out.

2 Corinthians 4:8–9 NIrV

When we look at stories in the Bible, the message is clear: difficult seasons never mean God has abandoned us. Testing is not a sign of failure, and suffering doesn’t mean God has left us. God takes the very pressure meant to crush us and uses it to build unshakeable endurance, maturity, and faith.

Just like Paul, Simon Peter, Job and Jesus himself went through tough challenges without being destroyed, the pressure we face—whether physical, emotional, or spiritual—is meant to shape us, not break us. What feels heavy today is actually building the strength we will need tomorrow. 

As we keep our focus on Jesus, remember this: the tests we face might be intense, but God’s strength is constant, and we will never have to go through any of it alone.

• Being tested means God is building our faith, not leaving us.
• Being wounded means we are in the battle, not that we have lost it.
• Stumbling is just a step in our process, not the end of our story.

Let’s keep our eyes on Jesus, seek his strength, and remain faithful. We may be knocked down, but we will not be knocked out.

Bring the inspiration with you

Save this phone wallpaper to remind you that God is with you in your times of testing!