Prepare Your Heart
Preparation is a big part of any celebration. The bigger the celebration, the larger-scale preparations are needed. As human beings we need time to get ready. But also God carefully prepared the creation of the world and the way of salvation long before they happened:
In the beginning God (prepared, formed, fashioned, and) created the heavens and the earth. (Genesis 1:1, AMP,*)
How wonderful to know that God took time to prepare everything in the world, including you and me. God had a perfect plan long before he formed you. You are not an accident and neither is this green earth. We are all part of God’s amazing plan.
That they might set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but might keep His commandments 8 And might not be as their fathers—a stubborn and rebellious generation, a generation that set not their hearts aright nor prepared their hearts to know God, and whose spirits were not steadfast and faithful to God. (Psalm 78:7-8, AMP,*)
Our role is to prepare the way to the Lord and to be prepared when Jesus comes back. How can we do that? It all starts with preparing our hearts to know God. There are many ways to do it (but they all include spending time with God). You need to find your way to prepare your heart to know God. Start by asking God to show you the best way for you.
This Advent season itself invites you to prepare your heart for Jesus. One way to do it is to make room for Jesus in your heart. So often we forget Jesus in the midst of our hectic lives or even in our Christmas preparations. Something needs to go, hopefully it is not Jesus but all the junk in our lives.
Anything and everything that keeps us from being steadfast and faithful to God needs to go. What it is to you will be different than what it is to me. What hinders me from being ready to fully celebrate God is different than what hinders you from doing the same. But the goal is the same: to prepare your heart to know God and hear his voice.
Then we are ready for the celebration God is preparing for us.
Then we are ready to meet Jesus.
Then we are ready to glorify God forever and ever.
Gracious God,
Thank you for carefully planning everything.
Thank you that none of us is an accident
but part of your plan.
Prepare our hearts and minds for you.
Prepare us to be ready to meet you.
Prepare us for the big celebration.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen
Q4U: How do you prepare your heart to know God and do his will?
Be blessed, my fellow pilgrim, as you prepare your heart for the big celebration!
* [As you might have noticed, I enjoy reading the Bible in different translations and love comparing them. I have started linking the Bible verses to Biblegateway.com so you can easily read (and compare) them in the different versions I’ve used while preparing each post.]
Image courtesy of Jo Vanlandingham, design Mari-Anna Stålnacke. Linking up today with Faith-filled Fridays, Five Minute Friday.
7 thoughts on “Prepare Your Heart”
It’s so easy to put ‘preparing your heart’ on the back burner, to all the extras that December brings. And, how do you write so much in 5 minutes?
Yes, it’s way too easy. We need to be intentional about making room for Jesus. The key to write much in 5 minutes is preparation. 😉 But I did go over a bit! Bountiful Blessings to you, Farin!
Mari-Anna, I throughly enjoyed your call to prepare. Thank-you, for I could do more to make room for Jesus Christ in my life.
Thank you kindly. I think we all could do more preparation. Abundant Advent-blessings to you, Gabriele!
The Word and prayer is how I prepare…does that rhyme? I guess it is how I prepare for ever day and I’m wanting be super intentional about it right now as we head toward Christmas. I don’t want the busyness of the season to crowd that out!
Yes! The Word and prayer are my ways to prepare too. Nothing else grounds me in Christ. But if I am faithful in this, all else will fall in their places too. A way for stress-reduced season for sure. Thank you, Amy, for sharing. I appreciate your comment. Have a blessed Christmas season!