Tuesday, January 30th, 2024
I had a dream a few nights ago that I was going to be a charter bus driver. My first trip was going to be taking a team to Rhode Island. We were supposed to leave one night at 6pm, but for some reason it was delayed by a day. I had neglected to prepare for the first night, so I was relieved when I discovered I had more time to prepare. One of my preparations was supposed to be changing the battery in the key fob for my car (which is odd because I was driving a bus). When I opened the key fob, the old battery was cut in half. So, I was supposed to get a new battery and cut it in half before putting it into the fob. All of a sudden it was 6pm on the next night and I found myself with that sinking feeling in my stomach because I had neglected to prepare again.
When I woke up God instantly started speaking the word “preparation”. Webster’s 1828 defines preparation as the act or operation of preparing or fitting for a particular purpose, use, service or condition. This is not a checklist of superstitious actions to satisfy some obligations or appease God so that He will give us what we are looking for. Being prepared is a way of living. It’s a heart fully surrendered to God. It’s a spirit that knows the criticality of seeking God first and foremost. It’s desiring to see as God sees. It’s learning to love as God loves. Preparation is all the time and energy we spend in the secret places of our homes and our minds. I love how Matthew 6:6 says it:
6 But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.
It’s the whispered prayers that only God hears. It’s the tears shed that only God sees. It’s the scribed nuggets of gold that our children and grandchildren will pass on to their children and grandchildren. Preparation is training our spiritual eyes to see and our spiritual ears to listen. God doesn’t want us to just perform. He wants us to discover all we can about our loving Heavenly Father so that when the time comes, we can share it with others in need. Spiritual preparation is not about studying harder to ace a test. It’s about obedience. Jeremiah 42:6 says this:
6 Whether it is pleasing or displeasing, we will obey the voice of the Lord our God to whom we send you, that it may be well with us when we obey the voice of the Lord our God.”
Sometimes the things God wants us to do may make little sense to our finite brains. Sort of like in my dream where I was supposed to cut a battery in half and put it in my key fob. My human understanding knew this would make it useless. I got hung up on the practicality of what I was asked to do, and this prevented me from being obedient and putting my full faith in God.
If we don’t believe every word that proceeds from the mouth of God, how can He trust us with the encouragement and/or blessings He wants us to give to others? God wants to know that we will treasure every word He gives us as if it’s the air we breathe. And it’s not a treasure to hoard, it’s a treasure to share with others to show them the love of God and stir up their faith.
Final Thoughts…
Let’s take some time today to seek God and ensure that we are being obedient to every preparation He asks of us, even the ones that make no earthly sense. Because He created us so uniquely there is just as much, if not more, variation in the methods He will use to prepare us for everything that He has for us. That’s the beauty of God. Even though we all take different paths to get there, we eventually get to the same place, recognizing that our Creator prepares us and the path ahead of us for our good and His glory.