Glad to see you have returned for a third day as we tackle the Advent theme of “Preparation.”
Our family always remembers the year that my young daughter Prisca opened a Christmas package to discover she had received a package of light bulbs. Her face said it all: Disappointment combined with confusion. Little did she know that the light bulbs were a vital part of my preparation for her real gift, an Easy Bake oven, a gift yet to be unwrapped.
How sad it would be to receive an Easy Bake oven without a light bulb to make it work. Or imagine finding a remote-control drone under the tree but no batteries to operate it! How does a child thank Mom and Dad for such a gift when the youngster can’t use it?
In the same way, God did more than simply create the world. He made preparations for that world and then he also made plans for supplying it with all it needed to operate. The “batteries” and “bulbs” included rain and sunshine to keep things growing.
As Psalm 147:8 says, “He covers the heavens with clouds, prepares rain for the earth, and makes the grass grow in mountain pastures.”
Take a walk outside today. Pretend you are Adam or Eve. How does our world today look different from the one they first saw in Eden? God’s ongoing cycle of nature tells us the Lord is still actively at work preparing for our care and nurture!
As surely as the sun comes up each morning, our God is faithful and will provide all you need. A third lesson for us on heart preparation? Praise, for his faithful on-going care.