Always Carry An Umbrella

Dear Friends,

Yesterday we had severe thunderstorms roll through town. I was at the grocery store when the first one hit, and as soon as we heard the first rumble of thunder, several of the clerks went into action, grabbing buckets and mops and heading for the center of the store. I asked the cashier what was going on, and she explained that the roof had a leak, so the clerks were getting ready to clean up any water that might come in. She finished by saying. “It doesn't always leak, but it's better to be prepared!” I agreed, and headed for my car, wishing I had prepared better by bringing an umbrella with me.

The experience in the store reminded me of the fact that “being prepared” is something we spend a lot of our lives doing. For example - we go to school so that we can be prepared for a job. While we're in school, we prepare for the tests and assignments. Then once we get a job, we keep up with changes in our work so that we can be prepared for a promotion. We prepare for emergencies, we prepare for conversations, we prepare for vacations, and each and every morning we prepare for the day by brushing our teeth and combing our hair. The list could continue on, but hopefully you're beginning to see what I was talking about - a big part of our lives is dedicated to “preparing”.

As I pondered that on my way home from the store, I realized that - while preparation is necessary in our physical lives - it’s even more important in our spiritual lives. Each day when we head out into the world, we have the opportunity to live for God, or to live for ourselves. But the path we choose each day will often come down to whether or not we're prepared for what we don't know is ahead.  For example, if we get up and head out into the day not really thinking about God or the life He wants us to live, when we run into a difficult situation we can easily slip into selfishness or anger or frustration. It's not that we woke up intending to choose to live that way, it's just that when challenging situations come up, we're not prepared. So in our “surprise” we're more likely to choose poorly and not live how God calls us to live.

That type of scenario can play itself out over and over throughout each of our days, as each day brings with it challenges and experiences that we can't anticipate when we roll out of bed in the morning. That’s why taking the time to spiritually prepare ourselves for the day is so critical. 2 Peter 3:14 tells us:  “So, dear friends, make every effort to be found living peaceful lives that are pure and blameless in His sight.” If we don't “make every effort” to be prepared spiritually for the day, we will be taken by surprise by the challenging or tempting situations of life. And more often than not, in our surprise, we will make the wrong choice on how to respond.

So today, let’s take time with God - specifically asking His Spirit to equip us for all that will happen in our lives today. And then let’s get up and do that again tomorrow, and the next day, and the next - until eventually we embrace how critical it truly is to spend time with God each morning, allowing Him to daily prepare us to live in a way that will honor Him - no matter what the day brings.

Amen?

Daniel