Test

Test. That word can strike fear in some hearts while spurring others on. Tests in school seldom bothered me unless they were “pop quizzes” and I wasn’t prepared. I found after graduation, that tests are part of life. Since then, I have endured a number of tests, but the ones that left lasting impressions were the “pop quizzes” that life often gives.

I used to travel a lot in my work and often as I left, I would leave my house in God’s hands. Sometimes thoughts would come through my mind like “What would I do if I came home and my house was burned down or I had been robbed?” My answer was usually “No problem. It all belongs to God and I trust him to watch over it.” I really didn’t expect anything to happen. We are in a small town with neighbors that look out for each other and live a couple of blocks from the fire department. One winter though, the pop quiz came. Did I really mean those words?

We live near a creek flowing from reservoir that supplies water to New York City. The winter started out with several snow storms, followed by a warm spell that melted much of the snow. Then, two days of rain came. At the dam holding back the reservoir, the decision was made to let water out because the level was getting too high. The combined circumstances were too much for the creek to handle and it became a raging torrent, overflowing its banks. The water crept closer and closer to our house, but we were confident it wouldn’t reach us and sat down to watch TV. Suddenly, we heard the sound of water, flowing in through a basement window. Looking outside, we discovered our house was three quarters surrounded with water and knew the creek wasn’t supposed to crest for several more hours. We would have to leave.

Important things were put up as high as possible. Arrangements were made to stay with a friend. We packed and got our boys ready and waded through four inches of water to get to the car. Our house was now completely surrounded and we knew it would go higher. I started the car, put it in drive and slowly pulled out. Heading down the street, I looked in the rear view mirror, saw the water surrounding house and had a sinking feeling in my stomach. I prayed a quiet prayer: “God, the house is yours. I have no control on what happens, but you do. The house is in your hands and I will trust you whatever happens.” At that moment, a peace settled over me that can’t be explained. Things were going to be all right.

Later, we discovered the water came up to within nine inches of our living room floor. God had indeed watched over our house. The realization also hit, I had passed the test.