You First

Isaiah tells us that there will be a voice calling in the wilderness ‘prepare the way for the Lord’ (Isaiah 40:3) and in the New Testament we read that it is John who is called to ‘prepare the way for the Lord’ (MT 3:3, Mark 1:3, Luke 1:76).

His focus is clearly to tell others about the coming Christ.

But as I read the passage in Mark about John preparing the way for the Lord, I asked myself if I am doing everything I can to prepare myself for the way of the Lord?

Am I preparing the way for the Lord to communicate with me every day?

Am I preparing the way for the Lord to use me for the good works He created in advance for me to do?

Are you?

What are you doing to prepare yourself for the way of the Lord on a day in and day out basis?

I have a long way to go, but allow me to share some things that help me prepare the way for the Lord:

·      Most nights I put my Bible where I know I will see it the next morning to read it

·      Before I read I pray these things:  Lord, open my eyes to see wonderful things in Your law (Ps 119:18).  Speak Lord, your servant is listening (I Samuel 3:10).  Let Your Word work its way into my entire being (MT 13:33)

·      I have a pre-determined Bible reading plan that includes the Proverb of the Date and 5 Psalms a day (both plans cover both books completely each month) so I don’t spend time and energy trying to think of what to read

·      I try to remove other distractions, but if a ‘to-do’ kind of thing pops in my mind, I write it down instead of letting it continue to distract me.  I feel no guilt about taking a moment to write something down while I’m reading.

Different things work for different people, but if you are looking for a way to prepare the way for the Lord in your own heart and your own life, try a few of these if you’d like.

For me, if I start with preparing the way for the Lord in my own heart, I am far better equipped and inspired to prepare the way of the Lord for others.