I believe there has been some great advise given here so I will not go into much detail on the test issue. What I wanted to say is in reference to what you stated about motivation.

You have to ride the waves when lifting. What I mean by that is sometimes when lifting motivation is not there. That is when you have to will yourself through that plateau. Plateau's come mentally as well as physically and you have to work through that because the wave up will come and you will be glad you worked through the low point. So push through that threshold and do not let yourself get down when the wave is low. Then when you pushed yourself to your peak, you will be ready for the test. Good luck and enjoy the journey.