Passing a test

I liked this interchange between a friend of mine and I thought I would share it.

From: A*
I think all the time in life there are tests. Each choice is a test. Sometimes we pass, sometimes we fail. Sometimes we get A- falling a little short of that perfect score, sometimes C+, sometimes B- and alot of times D- which is barely passing...almost failing but you didn't, thank the Lord. I know that feeling a lot.

I think in a way my friend bringing my favorite kind of wine in the whole wide world over the other night was a little test and I passed. I felt a pang when I saw it and held it in my hand and thought about it the whole fifteen steps into the living room to give it back to her so that she could take it back home. I thought about it all cold and covered in chilly condensation in my hand and just kept marching towards my friend knowing that wine was in my past and that my future only holds sobriety.

I couldn't hold on to that bottle and save it for some distant day in the future when I could drink it in celebration. The reality is the celebration would be that I will never be drinking in the future. Each choice is a test. I think I would give myself a B on this one because I would prefer less reminiscing on my lost love of Mer Solei vino. Lord please help me make more A+ choices and help me to learn from all my D- ones as well.

From: R

All these choices do add up to who we become. It's good to consider the right choices that we make and be encouraged. There is usually no fan fare or recognition for making the right choices. Sometimes when I look back on my life, I remember that some very real suffering resulted from making the right choice and sometimes the choices didn't seem that significant, but in retrospect, there is a very significant cumulative affect, for both right and wrong choices. Truly the path to victory is not strewn with roses, but what a wonderful end we all can have because of Christ's choices. Lord help me to chose well every day in even the small things. Rebecca :)

Heaven helped me 8/8/08
Love Always,
A*