They say that a faith that has not been tested is a faith without any proof. I suppose there is some truth to that. If you were to take a diamond ring to a jeweler and asked them if it was a real diamond ring. They would conduct a few different tests on the rock in order to ensure that it is a real diamond. If you were to take a pearl necklace to that same jeweler and asked them if it was a real pearl necklace they would do a few things to it in order to check if it was the real deal. These items are valuable if they are genuine. If they are not genuine they are not worth much. And so it is with our faith. Our faith must go through the fire once in a while in order to see what substance our faith is made of. Adrian Rogers use to say, “A faith that hasn’t been tested can’t be trusted.” Well, two men were once crossing the river in a little boat. They began to argue about faith and works. The man who was rowing them across the river just happened to be a Christian. He heard their discussion and turned to them and said, “I believe I can solve your difficulty. I hold in my hands two oars. The one I call faith and the other works. Now watch it. I pull the oar of faith alone. You see, we can only go around and around; we cannot go forward. Now I pull the oar of works; again we move around and around. Now, see, I pull both of them together and on we go.” He then said to them, “In my opinion, a faith without works is dead, or works without faith will not suffice.” A real faith has to have some action behind it. Sometimes God will allow a test to come our way in order to test that faith. It is through that test that we not only grow, but it is also the time that God reveals Himself to us in a more intimate way. 1 Peter 1:7 says, "that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ," The next time you find yourself in a test or trial, just remember that God is training you to get stronger in your faith!